Welcome to another Warriors Weekly after what felt like a quiet stretch considering the craziness of the last few weeks.
The Week that Was:
The Warriors made their only two games of the week compelling in different ways.
After playing a little lethargically for the first quarter, the Dubs ran the Suns off the floor in the second and third quarters including Klay dropping 27 in a single quarter. Amazing that 27 is still ten away from his career-high in a quarter.
The semi-hyped Bucks “revenge” game ended up being much closer than expected as the Warriors did not pull away until very late. That said, they still almost won by double digits despite not playing particularly well for about 40 minutes.
Stephen Curry Above the Break Three Update: Stephen Curry has made 112 above the break three pointers this year, more than three teams (Minnesota passed him!). Curry’s 45% shooting from there is better than every NBA team from mid-range and all but two teams in the paint (non-restricted area) not even accounting for the fact that 3>2.
Only one player in the top 30 of above the break three attempts has made a higher percentage of them than Curry: Khris Middleton at 46.2% with less than half as many tries.
LeBron James (23) shakes hands with Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the fourth quarter of game six of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Warriors won 105-97. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
The Soapbox: Previewing Christmas
The first Warriors/Cavs game since the Finals will bring a ton of media attention and Kyrie Irving’s return on Sunday certainly makes the talent gap tighter.
Normally I would say that the Cavs would approach the game with more fire since they lost the Finals and have a much smaller lead on their conference. However, this Warriors team has taken small things and used them as motivation as recently as last week. One other dynamic which will matter if Cleveland coach David Blatt wants it to is that the league made Christmas Day the first game of a back-to-back for the Cavs (who head to Portland) but not for the Warriors. If it gets out of hand at some point, Cleveland could throw in the towel.
Something to keep an eye on when the starters are out there is how each team chooses their defensive assignments. Klay Thompson guarding Kyrie Irving allows Curry to use less energy on that end but Kyrie is still recovering from his knee injury. Of course, Cleveland’s perimeter defender is coming off injuries too so Cleveland may be changing up their rotations. In that case, expect to see Kyrie and Matthew Dellavedova spending time on the MVP because JR Smith and former Warrior Richard Jefferson will not get that assignment.
In the Finals, Steve Kerr tried a series of players on LeBron James but Andre Iguodala eventually got the lion’s share of the time and his performance on that end played a major role in his Finals MVP. The Warriors have started Brandon Rush during Harrison Barnes’ absence but there could be pressure (internal and external) to make a one-time change.
That leads in to the final major question: will both teams keep things pretty vanilla out there? The Warriors have a meaningful lead on the rest of the league in terms of record and the Cavs have every expectation that a healthy squad can run through the Eastern Conference playoffs. Those dynamics may lead to a game where neither team wants to show too much. For example, the Draymond at center lineup that helped shift the series may get less time or completely stay in mothballs since HB will not be able to make it complete. After all, why give Cleveland any shred of confidence that they can handle it?
The stars and storylines will be fun but fans should be prepared for a less interesting game from teams with much bigger aspirations.
Derrick Favors (15) shoots the ball during the second half against the Golden State Warriors at Vivint Smart Home Arena. The Warriors won 106-103. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports
The Week to Come:
Another seven day stretch with only two games, though one of them will get plenty of attention.
The Jazz come to Oracle after a pretty fun game in SLC early in the road trip. Unfortunately, this one will likely be a lot less entertaining since the Jazz are without the Stifle Tower Rudy Gobert due to an MCL strain.
Then the Christmas game, of course. Hopefully you read about that above and get a chance to watch.
Considering the fact that both Cleveland guards are recovering from injury and the Warriors will be amped, it looks like another 2-0 week.
Happy holidays to you and yours and the final Warriors Weekly of 2015 will be coming next week.