How the length of Kevin Durant slowed down LeBron James and the Cavaliers

The Warriors struggled against LeBron James and the Cavaliers in the last three games of the 2016 NBA Finals due in large part to Cleveland’s ability to bully the Golden State death-lineup on the glass. During the off-season, the Warriors lost two physical centers in Andrew Bogut and Festus Azili, but the addition of Kevin Durant gave them a dimension that neither Harrison Barnes nor their departing centers could offer — length at the small-ball power forward position.

With Durant inserted into the Warriors rotation, they’ve changed their defensive coverages to reflect his strengths. When defending the pick-and-roll, the Warriors can afford to blitz the ball handler, force the extra pass and have a rim protector in Draymond Green or Durant contest rotate from the help-side.

The Warriors employ a strong-side zone defense that allows Green and Durant to survey and protect teammates who play overaggressive or get lost around screens. Also, when teams have a big set screens for the pick-and-roll ball handler, Durant’s length creates mistakes and miscommunication with the ability to slightly delay passes to the roll man or shooters.

Read More: Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant brought fire in Game 1

In Game 1, the Warriors’ defensive scheme — Durant in particular — flummoxed James and his playmaking off screen-and-roll situations. James had eight total turnovers, with Durant directly responsible for five.

Pick-and-roll and Isolation Defense

The Cavaliers wanted the Warriors to blitz James and force a 4-on-3  situation in the half-court for either Irving or a wing to facilitate from there. Golden State obliged, but Durant showcased great recovery defense and his 7-foot-5 wingspan disrupted James’ ability to exploit a mismatch off the screen-and-roll. In this example, LeBron received an initial screen but is denied an opportunity to attack because his right hand dribble is taken away. As the shot clock winds down, Durant tries to funnel James toward the help-defense. LeBron moves the basketball left-to-right, then attacks. Durant uses his body to stay in-front of LeBron, and his left hand forces a difficult release angle.

The second example exemplifies Durant’s prowess as an isolation defender in transition, off switches and any other way it may happen. Here, Durant uses his length to stay in front of James, once again funneling the ball handler to the weak side rim protector, forcing the pass and turnover with great lateral quickness and interior positioning.

The Warriors utilized the strategy of playing one-on-one on isolation possessions or two-on-two in any James pick-and-roll. They did not want to give up the corner 3-pointer and forced LeBron to make cross-court passes to crowded areas, seldom giving up open attempts to the Cavaliers’ best shooters.

Kevin Durant, Rim Protector

James’ size and strength proved non-existent against Durant when attacking downhill in half-court and transition situations. In this example, Durant stays vertical, using his upper arm to eradicate any opening. James’ only option is to play the basketball HIGH off the glass, but he misjudges the spot and the attempt isn’t even close.

Next: A collection of takes from Game 1 courtesy of The Rotation

Adjustments

The Cavaliers have the arduous task of figuring out how to score against three of the league’s very best defenders in Green, Durant and Andre Iguodala. They will need to adapt, creating different looks and timely movements to keep the Warriors off balance. Here are some adjustments the Cavaliers can make to mitigate the effectiveness of Durant and the Warriors’ strong-side overload defense.

• Instead of strict spread pick-and-roll, more misdirection and player movement from the weak-side is needed to force the Warriors to make complex rotational decisions and occupy the attention of the help-side rim protection.
• Disguising the normal and reliable Cleveland sets, including the Spain pick-and-roll and HORNS dribble hand-offs, will punish the Warriors switching scheme and create open avenues for LeBron to pass to his teammates around the rim.
• When the Warriors hedge hard on pick-and-rolls involving Stephen Curry and Durant, timely cuts and movement will occupy the help-side defender and create easier passing lanes for LeBron.
• Slowing the pace. The Cavaliers seldom ran the Kyrie/LeBron pick-and-roll to create post-up opportunities for James when Curry switches onto him. Yes, Cleveland enjoys playing fast and attacking in transition. However, to defeat the Warriors, the Cavaliers will need to out-rebound and out-shoot the Warriors. They need to continue to play big as they did in the 2015 and 2016 finals. Have LeBron slow down the pace and create from the angle-right or angle-left.
• More Tristan Thompson flare screens. His off-ball screens were absent in Game 1. Much of the Cavaliers’ offense relies on his skill-set of freeing his teammates.