CAN CLIPPERS CATCH
WARRIORS BY SURPRISE?
Kevin Durant's pending free agency looms over the Warriors
potential three-peat, which opens against the Clippers.
No disrespect to the LA Clippers, but there’s a big-picture
issue at play here in their first-round series. It’s about the Golden
State Warriors, and whether this is the beginning of the end of an era.
Sure, that’s putting the future ahead of the present, but
that’s far more important and discussion-ready than the Clippers stealing
a game. And it could fuel the Warriors to make it three straight championships
before Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson reach free agency this
summer. There’s a sense among the Warriors that they need to finish this
properly, just in case there’s a defection (or two) come July.
What will matter most in the Warriors-Clippers series?
Few, if any, thought the Clippers would be the last team
standing in L.A.; much less one with 48 wins. The Clippers defied the odds and
made the playoffs after trading their best player and leading scorer, Tobias
Harris, at the deadline. The killer sixth-man duo of Lou Williams and
Montrezl Harrell generate the most worry, where Williams is solid from the
perimeter and the poor-shooting Harrell somehow averaged 16.5 points per game.
Yet in the coach Steve Kerr era, the Warriors have barely
broken a sweat in the first round, winning 16 of 18 games there. They won the
season series with the Clippers 3-1, winning the last meeting by 27 points.
If you’re a believer in karma, the last time the
Warriors failed to make The Finals came courtesy of the Clippers in 2014.
The Warriors have come a long way since then.
THREE THINGS TO
WATCH
1. WHAT CAN WE EXPECT FROM DEMARCUS COUSINS NOW? None
of the Warriors should be motivated more than Cousins, who missed the playoffs
last season in New Orleans after Achilles surgery and also missed out on
cashing in during free agency. Well, "Boogie" signed up only for one
season in Golden State for the sole reason of winning a title and impressing
potential suitors this summer, so he has money and a ring on his mind. Cousins
has looked sharp lately and there’s no experienced L.A. center to stop him.
2. HOW MUCH WILL PAT BEVERLEY GET UNDER CURRY’S SKIN AND
WILL IT MATTER? The last time these two polar opposites met, there was
a brief skirmish. Beverley as usual played defense a little too tight for
comfort and Curry shot a forearm, which of course Beverley was only too happy
to return the favor. Beverley is all about irritating
and knocking his man off rhythm, and often he succeeds. Curry
doesn’t rattle easily, though and it might be Beverley who gets frustrated.
3. WHO NEEDS TO BE THE HERO-BALL GUY FOR THE STAR-LESS
CLIPPERS? The Clippers are among the league’s least-threatening
3-point shooting teams and their designated bail-out artists are their best
shooters from distance: Williams and Danilo Gallinari. The latter had a solid
season -- 19.8 ppg with 43.3 percent shooting on 3-pointers -- and is one of
the more underrated players in the game. But does he scare anyone, especially a
good defensive team like the Warriors? Probably not enough for the Clippers’s
sake.
THE NUMBER TO KNOW
95.1 -- The Warriors' starting lineup
-- Curry, Cousins, Thompson, Durant, and Draymond
Green -- allowed just 95.1 points per 100 possessions after the
All-Star break, making it the best defensive lineup among those that played at
least 100 post-break minutes.
Though the Warriors went 9-0 with their five-star lineup
before the break, the lineup allowed 114.3 points per 100 possessions in its
112 pre-break minutes. Things changed after the break, even though it played
more post-break minutes against top-10 offenses than it did against bottom-10
offenses. The champs led the league in offensive efficiency (and ranked in the top three for the
fifth straight season).
Defense has been an issue in the last two regular seasons
and Cousins' ability to defend in space could be a question mark. But the
Warriors' ability to lock down defensively with their five most talented
players on the floor over the last seven weeks is not a good sign for those
hoping that their title run will come to an end prematurely.
MY PICK
The Clippers will be prepared for this series because that’s
how Doc Rivers-coached teams roll. He should be a strong favorite for Coach of
the Year for the way he steered his club and made the necessary changes after
the trade deadline to keep the Clippers moving forward. Which means, the
Clippers should make for a few suspenseful finishes and that’s a victory in and
of itself. WARRIORS IN 4.
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