Golden State Warriors: 5 Adjustments For NBA Finals Game 3
1. Shake It Off, Steph
In the category of things that need to be shaken off, the league’s MVP hasn’t been himself through the first two games of this series. Sure he put up 26 points on 50 percent shooting in Game 1, but most of his production in that game came during a limited second quarter spurt.
Even if it was his finger roll that sent Sunday’s Game 2 into overtime, we’re still waiting on Curry to show up in the 2015 NBA Finals and have an MVP-caliber performance.
For the series, Curry is averaging 22.5 points, 6.5 assists and 5.0 rebounds per game. Those aren’t terrible numbers by any means, but the Warriors have struggled to score in this series and their star point guard’s shooting struggles (34.9 percent from the field and 19 percent from three-point range) are the root of the problem.
Matthew Dellavedova made some huge plays last night and he’s played excellent defense in the playoffs. Curry’s Game 2 numbers with Delly guarding him seem to speak for themselves.
D-ellavedova pic.twitter.com/GecUnj2VeV
— Strictly 4 My X’ers (@Lizzs_Lockeroom) June 8, 2015
But let’s get one thing straight: the guy cannot check Steph Curry. No one can check Steph Curry. If you go back and actually watch the shots Curry took with Dellavedova guarding him, most of them were the same quality of looks that he gets against any defender; they just didn’t go in.
In Game 3, I expect that trend to change.
Going to be 2 days of talking about Steph Curry getting shut down by Dellavedova - and then Curry's going to actually murder him in Game 3
— Scott Howard (@ScottHoward42) June 8, 2015
Curry making only four of his 21 three-point attempts through the first two games is uncharacteristic and downright scary if you’re a Warriors fan, but the good news is that even with Curry playing subpar basketball and LeBron James averaging an unholy 42-12-9 so far, this series is still tied 1-1 and the Dubs had a good chance of winning both games.
On the road, Golden State will need Curry to find his rhythm again. But if he’s able to do so, it’d take a monster effort from Cleveland — and another collective pants-pooping from Golden State’s supporting cast — to prevent the Warriors from reasserting themselves in a series that’s suddenly up for grabs.
Stephen Curry: I doubt this will happen again.
— RealGM (@RealGM) June 8, 2015
Next: 2015 NBA Finals: Game 2 Recap
More from Hoops Habit
- 7 Players the Miami Heat might replace Herro with by the trade deadline
- Meet Cooper Flagg: The best American prospect since LeBron James
- Are the Miami Heat laying the groundwork for their next super team?
- Sophomore Jump: 5 second-year NBA players bound to breakout
- NBA Trades: The Lakers bolster their frontcourt in this deal with the Pacers