Golden State Warriors: 3 takeaways from Game 1 vs. Spurs

1. Aldridge not an issue for GSW sans Leonard

The Warriors are far and away more talented than the Spurs. It is unfair to expect LaMarcus Aldridge to make this a series by himself when Durant, Thompson and Green are on the other side.

With that being said, stars should still be able to impact the game positively. In what has now been five straight postseason games, a Kawhi Leonard-less Spurs team has posed no issues to the Warriors’ defense.

Aldridge is easy to neutralize due to his relatively non-versatile offensive game. Sure, he can do work on the block or as a mid-range shooter, but really it’s the same thing: He moves to a spot, calls for the ball, and goes to work. His inability to either initiate the offense himself or create clean looks through off-ball movement allows the Warriors to match up how they want, anticipate and dictate where he gets the ball and bring help when he does.

Aldridge does not beast double-teams, nor does he pass particularly well out of them. He is a decent rebounder and career-underrated defender, but is not a game-changing force in either area.

Aldridge averaged 15.8 points and 5.8 rebounds on 46 percent true shooting in last year’s Western Conference Finals, and followed that up with 14 points and two rebounds on 5-of-12 shooting in Game 1 this year. For a guy that seems so much happier playing without Leonard, his ability to make any sort of impact as a No. 1 option is underwhelming.

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The Warriors certainly share Aldridge’s happiness. Things are easier for them when there isn’t a guy scoring 26 points in 23 minutes on 72.9 percent true shooting out there. And considering Leonard did that on an extremely tender ankle, imagine what he could do right now on a “sore quad.”