Five Observations on Warriors-Lakers Game 2
I lost my mood ring and I don't know how I feel about that.
Remember in 30 Rock when Tracy Jordan does not know how to feel about his lost mood ring? That’s where I’m at with the Lakers-Warriors series right now. There is a compelling case to be made that LA was satisfied with having stolen home court in Game 1 and came out with less force in Game 2 (Anthony Davis having played 44 minutes in Game 1 may have had something to do with it as well), with more urgency to be expected on Saturday and Monday. Or one could make the case that home court notwithstanding, the Warriors figured out a potent mix of Draymond Green defending Anthony Davis, amped up high pick and roll actions for Steph Curry, and a small ball unit that spaces out the Lakers, all of which gives Golden State the upper hand going forward. The Warriors went 62% on 13 three point attempts classified as “open”, but they also went 45% on 20 such attempts in their Game 1 loss; Klay Thompson’s Game 2 heater may be just the slump-busting trigger he needs to kick start an extended streak.
There are always adjustments to come. Just when we thought that all the cards were on the table in the Golden State-Sacramento series, Mike Brown sprung a surprise with extended Terence Davis and Trey Lyles-at-the-five minutes. Sometimes adjustments have minuscule half lives; the Davis adjustment that proved so dynamic in Sacramento’s Game 6 win was rendered toothless in their Game 7 loss.
Before we get to those adjustments in the next game, here are five observations from Golden State’s Game 2 blowout victory.
Draymond Green, Defensive Stalwart
After Golden State’s Game 1 loss, Draymond Green said that he “played like s**t” and confessed to being disgusted with his own play. Green turned in a masterclass in Thursday’s victory. If Steph Curry is the most dynamic, sui generis offensive talent of his generation, Draymond is the defensive equivalent. Defensive versatility is invaluable in today’s NBA and Draymond is as versatile as they come. He can stonewall behemoths in the post (more on that later if the Warriors make it through the Lakers and face the Nikola Jokic Nuggets):
Draymond is also a premier help defender. Here he deters a lob to AD, comes over to help on a layup attempt, and still manages to box his original assignment out on the boards:
Part of the reason Coach Kerr did not immediately match Draymond up on De’Aaron Fox from the jump in the previous series is that Draymond is often at his best playing a free safety/defensive conductor role on the back line. Watch the possession below closely. Draymond’s man Davis begins by chilling in the corner, so Draymond sinks almost into the paint to deter a D’Angelo Russell drive off the handoff. Draymond’s head is on a swivel the entire time, alive to the threat of Rui Hachimura rolling into the paint, but also mindful of his man diving towards the rim from the corner. As soon as Andrew Wiggins has Hachimura covered, Draymond diverts all his energy to boxing Davis out.
(Side bar: The possession above also shows some of the issues the Lakers face from the lack of shooting on their roster. Davis looks to pin Dennis Schroeder’s man in to free Schroeder up in the corner. Draymond does not seem overly concerned if Poole dies on the screen; the Warriors will live with Schroeder and Jarred Vanderbilt firing form outside.)
Per Kevin O’Connor, Draymond defended Anthony Davis on over 60% of plays in Game 2, nearly double the rate of Game 1. I am curious to see whether Coach Kerr continues to match up Draymond on Davis going forward. For all the talk of the size the Warriors give up with Draymond at center, those lineups proved excellent at both deterring rim attempts (in the 99th percentile of all lineups per Cleaning the Glass) and forcing misses at the rim (in the 72nd percentile of all lineups) in the regular season. The bigger concern is the physical toll it might take on Draymond over extended minutes. Wrapping games up in the third quarter helps mitigate that.
The Jordan Poole Conundrum
Through nine game, the 2023 playoffs have not been especially kind to Jordan Poole. He is having a harder time finishing at the rim, finishing under 60% of his rim attempts (down from 68% in the regular season and 76% in last year’s playoffs). The Warriors need Poole’s north-south juice, but not at these efficiency levels.
The offense will come around and the fact that Poole is taking care of the ball through this slump should be a sign for optimism. The defensive travails are a bigger cause for concern. Jordan Poole has never been a plus defender, but some of his mistakes have really cost the Warriors. Early in his first stint on Thursday, Poole allowed the simplest of rim cuts to Rui Hachimura.
Part of the problem is that Poole is too upright in his defensive stance, allowing opponents to blow by him with ease. When he isn’t too upright, he might open his body up too much, opening up a path to the paint.
Poole had five fouls in sixteen minutes on Thursday. He cannot be getting into bad positions and then barreling into opponents as he scrambles to make up.
The Warriors are going to need Jordan Poole in these playoffs, his offensive value is that important to this team. For him to provide that though, he needs to not be too big of a defensive liability.
Steph Taking The Two
The 30 foot moon shots can make us forget that Steph Curry’s jumper is a threat from every part of the floor, including within the arc. Golden State had an eFG% of *rubs eyes* 68% in Game 2, shooting 55% on non-garbage time threes and 52% on mid-range twos per CTG. Steph conducted the offense with expertise and came away with 12 assists to show for it. He also picked his spots and was smart about picking up found money when the defense gave it to him. Towards the end of the first quarter, a slightly misplaced Jordan Poole pass found Steph just inside the arc; Steph just took the in-rhythm jumper.
The Lakers guards, Austin Reaves and Dennis Schroeder in particular, have done an admirable job through two games of top-locking the Warriors shooters and denying them the arc. Here, Steph reacts by spinning towards the nail and taking the middie. Splash.
What Comes Off The Steph Curry Doubles?
I don’t have much to add:
The Lakers are going to live with the four-on-threes, even with someone as expert as Draymond playmaking. The Warriors dissected the Lakers in those situations fairly easily in Game 2. Expect more alacrity from Lebron helping on Draymond’s drive in the situation above going forward. The Warriors will need Andrew Wiggins and others to make the shots that find them when the Lakers go back to closing off the rim. Where that nets out is one of the more interesting things to watch in the next few games.
Deep Cuts
The Warriors typically generate those four-on-three situations by ramping up Steph’s pick and rolls. Steve Kerr has been loath to rely too heavily on a heavy diet of Steph PNRs, but the Curry/Draymond high PNR remains undefeated, even against big men well versed in coming up to the level, blitzing and hedging, or bringing a hard double.
Golden State has ways to mitigate poor shooting from the role players in any four-on-threes. One way is by having sub-par shooters cut in from the corner as a surprise. No team cut with more frequency than the Warriors in the regular season; it is a staple of their offense. Watch JaMychal Green create an easy layup for himself here:
Green is at 37% on corner threes this season; he could have better looks out there than just chilling in the corner. Gary Payton 2 is another who knows how to cut his way into layups and dunks when defenders sag off of him.
An added benefit of those cuts for someone as bouncy as GP2? It puts him in good position for offensive rebounds; not surprisingly, GP2 rebounds over 12% of his team’s misses, essentially making him the best offensive rebounding guard in the league.
Off ball cuts aside, the Warriors’ corner men might also catch and drive, particularly when Anthony Davis and/or LeBron James are involved in the initial action and the Lakers rim is more vulnerable.
Is there anything in the next game, or in these playoffs that you would like to see covered in this space? Drop me a comment or email!