Kevin Durant morphs into a rim protector for the Golden State Warriors
Even after serving as the leading scorer in each of the first two games of the 2017 NBA Finals, Kevin Durant has managed to make an even more of an impact on the defensive end for the Golden State Warriors.
The addition of Kevin Durant to an already potent roster is reaping unexpected benefits for the Golden State Warriors in the 2017 NBA Finals.
To create enough cap space to land Durant last summer, the team needed to quickly shed salary. Among the cap casualties was Andrew Bogut, a player that once led the league in rejections per game and averaged 1.7 blocks during his four seasons in Golden State.
As Golden State claimed a 2-0 Finals advantage, it was the defensive impact of Durant, especially at the rim, that was pivotal during a 132-113 victory Sunday night.
Foul trouble to Draymond Green, along with the team’s hesitancy to play a traditional center, forced Durant to anchor the paint.
The four-time scoring champion delivered by swatting away five shots, one short of matching a career-high, to go along with 33 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and three steals.
KD is not here for a long series. pic.twitter.com/R9R081EFVA
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) June 5, 2017
The blocks from Durant were evenly spread out and came in a variety of ways.
Kyrie Irving had a jump shot slammed into the floor, a layup attempt from LeBron James was rerouted to the baseline, Channing Frye was rejected before he even began a layup attempt, Iman Shumpert had his shot at the rim quickly thwarted and turnaround jumper from Kevin Love was sent back even before it left his hands.
The outing was just the second time in 103 career playoff games Durant managed to block five shots.
The exceptional shot-blocking performance allowed head coach Steve Kerr to pepper the floor with long range shooters, instead of clogging the flow of the offense by giving extended time to Zaza Pachulia or JaVale McGee.
Live Feed
Blue Man Hoop
The Warriors have only played a traditional center for 37 out of the first 96 minutes of the 2017 NBA Finals, largely because of Durant’s ability to erase seemingly easy scoring opportunities.
During the 2017 NBA Playoffs, both James and Durant are averaging 1.4 blocks per game, but their impact defensively has been dramatically different.
Opponents are converting 47.1 percent of their attempts with James serving as the primary defender at the rim during this post season. If James is traded out for Durant at the rim, the percentage plummets to 41.7 percent.
The mark from Durant is the second lowest among all playoff performers to defend 50 or more shots at the rim this post season.
The Cavaliers simply can’t convert at the rim with Durant on the floor.
In the series opener, Cleveland sank just 4-of-11 attempts with Durant protecting the rim and as a team, made just 29.7 percent of their attempts at the basket.
Sunday night, the Cavaliers challenged Durant just five times at the rim, converting only twice.
Unable to score the ball, Cleveland experienced just as much difficulty stopping Durant from splashing it through the net. The 27-year-old is scoring 35.5 points in the series while posting phenomenal shooting percentages from all over the court.
The dominance on both ends has rarely been seen in NBA Finals play, as he joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Hakeem Olajuwon and Tim Duncan as the only players ever to simultaneously score 30 points and block five shots on the same night in the championship round.
Kevin Durant is the 4th player in NBA Finals history with a 30-pt, 5-blk game (Duncan, Olajuwon 2x, Kareem 2x) (via @EliasSports) #NBAFinals
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 5, 2017
Durant has knocked down 56.3 percent of his attempts from the field, 50 percent of his three-point attempts and has converted 91 percent of his free throws.
Even when Cleveland is playing tight defense on Durant, they can’t force him to miss. The 6-foot-9 forward made 10-of-15 contested shots Sunday night, bringing his average up to 58.6 percent on contested shots in the series.
Once dubbed Mr. Unreliable by The Oklahoman, Durant has been anything but in the playoffs, averaging 26.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.4 blocks and 0.8 steals per game.
Just two victories away from his first championship, Durant has once again been unstoppable offensively while rejecting 17 shots, tied for the fifth-most in the 2017 postseason.
Next: Golden State Warriors - 5 keys to winning the 2017 NBA Finals
Adding elite shot blocking has given the Warriors a new dimension — one Cleveland will quickly have to solve if it wants to defend its title.