Spring Cleaning: The Golden State Warriors Shoot Themselves to a 2-0 Lead

April 18, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30, right) shoots the basketball against New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23, left) during the second quarter in game one of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Pelicans 106-99. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The Golden State Warriors have raced out to a predictable 2-0 lead in their first round matchup with the New Orleans Pelicans. With a sweep potentially on the horizon, it’s worth taking a quick look at some of the shooting patterns for key players from both teams. One method to observe this activity is through the lens of Hunting Grounds, specifically comparing regular season to the playoffs. While it’s dangerous to conclude too much from comparing up to 82 games to just two, it’s at least worth a look to identify any glaring changes.

For starters, let’s look at MVP candidate Steph Curry:

This is interesting. The most glaring similarities lie in two areas: At The Rim and Above The Break three-point shots. This is expected. Interestingly, Curry has yet to have success from either corner, and instead seems to be more active in the midrange than normal. While this may be the type of trend than normalizes as the playoffs go on, it may also hint to the type of defensive strategy used against him – the type of strategy that constantly preparing for the same opponent can create. Again, before we credit the Pelicans too much for this shift, we’ll need to see if it endures.

Then there’s Curry’s Splash Brother backcourt mate, Klay Thompson:

Klay has stayed a bit more consistent to his regular season Hunting Grounds. In general most of his favorite spots are being used during the postseason, with exceptions at the right corner and right elbow. His most utilized areas at this point have been the right wing behind the three-point line and At The Rim, followed by the left elbow. Like Steph, Thompson’s midrange vs. three-point Hunting Grounds will be worth monitoring (likely? potentially? certainly?) against different schemes.

On the other side of the coin, here’s how Anthony Davis has performed:

Davis has obviously performed very well, and been quite the bright spot for team down 0-2. His midrange activity thus far remains prolific, albeit slightly more constricted than normal. His activity at the elbows hasn’t been as prevalent, with seemingly more diverse activity in the paint than normal. This is the same for the baseline jumpers, where there has been some-but-not-much. This is potentially related to matchups, as the smaller Draymond Green has done better job on Davis than most other Warrior defenders (especially in Game 2, where Davis shot worse when guarded by Green). We’re lucky enough to get at least two more games from Davis this postseason – watching where he scores when guarded by different defenders may help teams understand how to minimize his impact. Like the old adage, you can really only hope to contain him.

Data and photo support provided courtesy of NBA.com, Basketball-Reference.com, and data extraordinaire Darryl Blackport.