Schmeelk: Golden State, Cleveland Both Return To Form In Warriors Win
By John Schmeelk
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Most of the time, over the period of a few games in the playoffs, teams will eventually play like they did in the regular season. There are exceptions to the rule, like when there are particularly bad matchups for certain teams, but more times than not teams don't get significantly better or worse when they play in a playoff series.
What was the chance that the Warriors' Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry would continue to play as poorly as they did in the first three games of the series? It was far more likely that at least one of them would find their range and explode for a big game. In Game 4, it was Curry exploding, scoring 38 points and hitting seven 3s. He still only shot 11-of-25, but it was good enough.
Thompson wasn't too bad himself, shooting 50 percent from the field, hitting four 3s and scoring 25 points. They combined for only four turnovers. When two players are as good as Thompson and Curry, you can only slow them down for so long. Eventually, they are going to do their thing. Just ask the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Just like the Warriors fell back into what they usually do, the Cavaliers fell back into their bad habits in the second half. All season, especially in the playoffs, the Cavaliers had far too many defensive lapses. They showed up again Friday night, with bad communication on pick-and-roll plays that gave the Warriors far too many open 3s. The Cavs let the Warriors score 58 second-half points. It's hard to win when that happens.
Their offense fell back into bad isolation tendencies too, especially in the fourth quarter. The Cavs tightened up and played iso-ball, which resulted in only 20 fourth-quarter points. LeBron James and Kyrie Irving took turns trying to score on their own. James struggled offensively all game, and after a fast start, Irving ran out of gas late. It was very reminiscent of what happened to the Thunder when they began to feel the pressure of the Warriors late in games. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook couldn't beat the Warriors playing one-on-one, and neither can James and Irving.
In fact, the Cavaliers looked a lot like the Thunder in this game. When they were playing well in the first half, Cleveland dominated the offensive glass with 17 second-chance points on 10 offensive rebounds. Tristan Thompson was doing his best Steven Adams impression. But the Warriors reversed that trend in the second half, outrebounding the Cavs 25-19 overall and 9-6 on the offensive glass. Golden State was plus-6 in second-chance points, and that eventually doomed Cleveland.
MORE: Schmeelk: Warriors' Greatness, Not Cavaliers' Struggles, Should Be NBA Finals Story Line
Fatigue was a big problem in the second half, and that's on Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue. Heading into the fourth quarter, James, J.R. Smith, and Irving had all played more than 30 minutes. All three played every single minute of the third quarter. All three then played all 12 fourth-quarter minutes as well. Irving, who was asked to do so much offensively, especially looked gassed and shot just 3-of-10.
After a 16-minute first half in which he grabbed five offensive rebounds and scored 10 points, Tristan Thompson played just 13 second-half minutes and didn't score while grabbing just two rebounds and missing two free throws.
Lue is learning on the fly in this series, and it is showing up in a bad way for the Cavs. He has made few adjustments, spare being forced into starting Richard Jefferson, and their offense has not been consistent in moving the ball and moving without the ball.
This series is over. The Cavs can't win three straight against the Warriors. The Cavs are good, but the Warriors are just better. It was that way in the regular season, and it's that way in the NBA Finals.
Schmeelk's Snippets
• James played poorly (again), but, to me, this series is still more about his teammates than it is him. Golden State pays so much attention to him when he drives or posts up, and his teammates can't make them pay. The Warriors have great one-on-one defenders, and if James' jumper doesn't fall, he will struggle to score. He hasn't shot well all season, and that hasn't changed in this series.
• James is frustrated. You could see it at the end of the game when he got into it with Draymond Green and Curry. It is understandably killing him that he can't bring a title to Cleveland.
• The Warriors will be remembered for "the Splash Brothers" and their 3-point shots, but it is their defense that sets them apart. Andre Igoudala and Green are so good, and they are making James' life miserable.
• Who is the MVP of this series right now? I honestly don't know. Green? The Warriors are a great team, and that's showing the way they win even without a star controlling things offensively.
• Channing Frye's defense is so miserable the Cavs can't play him, and that is killing their offense.
• Kevin Love isn't the reason the Cavs lost Friday night, but he's also not the reason they are going to win, either. His defense is a huge liability, and he isn't good enough to take advantage of the Warriors' guards when they are switched onto him.
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