NBA Finals Game 2: Four Takeaways
By Ian Levy
3. Warriors winning in the paint
The offensive reputation of the Warriors is built on their outside shooting, a steady rain of back-breaking rainbows launched from beyond the arc. There is much more to this team’s scoring attack and so far in the Finals, it has been their work on the interior that is providing the margin of victory.
Through the first two games of this series, the Warriors have outscored the Cavaliers by 22 points in the paint. Cleveland lacks a traditional rim protector and Golden State has taken advantage to a startling degree. Without one defender who can control the back line, the Cavs are left with rim protection by committee, asking everyone to rotate in and share that responsibility. In Game 2, the Warriors pulled down 12 offensive rebounds, several of which came from Tristan Thompson or Kevin Love’s man sliding into open space as Love or Thompson rotated down to help on a drive.
Cleveland’s defensive rotations have, in general, been extremely poor in this series. The first line is often in the right position but the Warriors are adept at continuing to poke at soft spots until they emerge. The Warriors are getting good shots at the basket and then often getting another crack at them because no one from Cleveland is coming in to box out.
Of the 104 points Golden State has scored in the paint, just 22 of them have come from baskets scored on drives. Giving up easy offensive rebounds, getting back cut for layups, neglecting to crash down on a man rolling to the rim, Cleveland’s interior defense has been unbelievably porous. If they can’t stem the tide here, there is no chance for them in this series.
Next: 2. Draymond Green is pretty good