What adjustments will Ty Lue make? Kawhi looked good in the 1st half, but r/NBA users mentioned that Kawhi looked exhausted in the 2nd half. It looked like Denver's altitude affected him the most out of all of the players.
What adjustments do you think Udoka will make in game 2? My guesses:
-More touches for Sengun. He was pretty effective out there, so I assume Udoka will have Sengun shoot or facilitate more.
-More minutes for Jabari Smith Jr.. He looked fantastic in limited minutes and was the reason why the Rockets were making a run in the 2nd half. I won't be surprised if Udoka has Smith Jr. start game 2 in place of Thompson.
-Have FVV and J. Green facilitate more instead of shooting. This is easier said than done. I'm not sure how Houston's backcourt will be able to do this since they are trigger happy.
-Maybe play Aaron Holiday? He was good against us this season and is useful if he's hitting his threes. But that's a huge "if." If he's not hitting threes, then he's basically Bad FVV 2.0.
I expect them to be extremely physical. I expect some of our guys to literally get thrown to the floor and for them to take the tech. Hopefully, they don't injure someone trying to make their statement.
I expect the Warriors to have a plan for this too. Kerr certainly made it sound like he intends to have his guys ready for Houston's tactics.
Yeah full on tackling is going to happen. They called a total of only 32 fouls in that superphysical game - league average is 38 per game. Tomorrow is going to be even worse I think. My MAJOR WORRY is you know what!
I'm not so sure. Adams gives a lot but takes away a lot. His best -- I should say only scoring threats are a putback or wide open dunk. He can't create, he can't space, no one guards him. Not a passer, not a dribbler. These things make it much easier for the Warrior defense. So, a mixed bag. That's why I agree more that Jabari Smith is the call because he can also outrebound us, but he can score and make plays.
Good idea, but according to Rockets fans, Adams has not been able to play more than 25 mins/game due to a season-ending surgery on his PCL that sidelined him for the entire 2023-24 season.
Can we all just admit at this point that with the Warriors having turned their season around and now won the first game of the playoffs as a 7 seed facing a 2 seed, Coach Kerr just might know what he's doing?
Never mind who you had on your team. 4 rings as a coach is 4 rings. He’s still top tier and Spo might be the only one outside of Pop that’s peers with Steve.
I mean the dude is human and makes mistakes. But 95% of time he knows what he's doing. At the same time does he have 4 rings with the Warriors without taking risks?
Simmons on Westbrook 3pt: "I don't think I've ever seen anyone left more open at any level of basketball in any game I've ever watched in my life including girls high school basketball in the 8th grade"
This is probably a good time to refer back to the pioneering work of Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, (1967), in which she outlined “The Five Stages of Kuminga Grief.”
1. Denial: “it’s just matchups, Kerr will play him next game.” “he’s just coming off of injury.”
2. Anger: “Kerr is a fool, the Warriors don’t know what a gem they’ve got.” “ If Kerr even asks him to play in garbage time I hope Kuminga tells him to fuck off.”
3. Bargaining: “I don’t need to see him start. I don’t even need to see him play 20 minutes a game. One minute, just one? How about a shot of him smiling on the bench?” Or “Maybe everyone else will foul out and Kerr will be forced to play him?” Or “I promise he’ll rebound more and always always pass it to Steph when he’s open.”
4. Depression: “I’m never going to see him fly in for a dunk again” “ Even if the Warriors win the championship, what does it matter, anyway?” “No one even listens when I advocate for him.” “No one cares about what I want.” “No one loves me.” “What does it even matter? In five million years the Earth will be swallowed up by the Sun and all traces of Kuminga’s professional career will evaporate.”
The NBA settled some tiebreak scenarios for the draft today, firming up some details from the Jimmy Butler trade: The Warriors will send the 20th overall pick in the upcoming draft to the Heat and will receive the 41st overall pick. @anthonyVslater
I just rewatched the 4th (I was busy decompensating in realtime), and noticed one thing.
For anyone who thinks the refs are out to get Dray, they could very easily have given Dray a tech in the pushing incident with Sengun. It would have been a stretch, but a mild one. Sengun was backing off (though I imagine he was saying plenty).
In general, the reffing was pretty good last night, IMHO.
Just to make sure we're on the same page... Saboner started that isht by wrapping his entire body around Dray's ankle, which caused Dray to need to forcefully remove his foot from his grasp (or break an ankle falling over), which led to Dray losing his balance and getting super pissed off and losing his cool.
If you look in slow motion, Sengun tries the same scummy trick he did from the last game, where he hooks under Dray’s arm to try to pretend Dray hits him in the face. I lost a lot of respect for Sengun after that move.
Yup, and neither was Dray pushing back. As long as he doesn't push back and let his elbow rise up to Sengun's jaw, they'll be fine.
Don't worry, G2 is coming. Villon will be coming out in full force, not just the sly little pushes in the back or the marginal sliding under Steph's shot, and Sengun seems like he wants to show the bully he's got something too.
If Green is gambling that the refs are going to give him a pass because it’s the playoff, then he needs to think twice and thrice. I wish he would just concentrate his energy on the game and not give in to his emotions. He could cause us to lose a game.
I'm pretty sure they are trying to avoid becoming part of the story as long as possible. What with the pre-series talking points of physicality, and the assholery of Dray, Brooks, Sengun, and all... the longer they can put off becoming a big part of the series narrative, the better. And not giving soft technicals is a great way to avoid becoming part of the story.
Moody compensates for whatever lateral quickness he lacks by employing his strength and 7-foot-1 wingspan. The Warriors have honed his technique to take away the space between him and the ballhandler while still being hard to get around.
He no longer leans forward when he guards. He spreads his arms out more often, instead of the arm-bar. He puts his weight onto the often-lighter guard.
And the activator of all these elements is aggressiveness. Moody isn’t worried about getting beat. He’s focused on dictating.
(assistant coach) Weems taught Moody a tactic he learned from Wes Unseld Jr. He called it “tactile touch.” Hit the ballhandler on the left shoulder. Tap his right elbow. Swipe at the ball. Tap his hip. Hit his left shoulder. Swipe at the ball. Swipe at the ball again. Every touch forces the ballhandler to adjust. Make him pivot. Make him switch hands. Make him turn his back. Put him on the defensive.
“Making the guy move the ball around,” Weems said, “and feel uncomfortable. I think that’s what Moses does now, really well.”
After the trade to acquire Butler, Moody’s 109 deflections were the fourth-most in the NBA behind Atlanta’s Dyson Daniels (156), Sacramento’s Keon Ellis (115) and the Los Angeles Clippers’ Kris Dunn (112) — all reputed defensive specialists. From Feb. 8 on, the Warriors led the NBA in steals and had five players totaling at least 30 — Draymond Green (59), Butler (50), Moody (38), Stephen Curry (35) and Brandin Podziemski (32).
I have noticed that GP-II never stands still when guarding either. Always shifting and probing. Actually I think Loon-dawg is a good example too. If nothing else it can burn a lot of shot clock.
So I talked to a friend who’s been a local beat reporter since 2008 for some insight on the Kuminga situation. He didn’t cover basketball, but I figured his instinct on the situation might give an interesting perspective.
He took one look at the whole situation and told me it all smelled like Kuminga/Warriors FO competing to take control of the narrative. After learning that he wasn’t a part of the playoff rotation, Kuminga taking shots on the court after the game in full view of the public instead of a private facility was likely a deliberate attempt to put pressure on the coaching staff to give him minutes. The cavalcade of reports by local beat reporters who all of a sudden are being fed stories about Kuminga’s apparent poor play and being withdrawn from the team coming all once was likely info leaked by the FO to control the narrative from their end.
Obviously this is all conjecture, but it was interesting conjecture for me!
controlling the narrative doesn't really explain why he's sitting, though. It just explains the rumors.
If it was just that JK's out of the rotation, but still going to play spot minutes, I think they'd have said something to that effect.
So far, the only one who's said anything like that is Green (and I think he doesn't necessarily know).
For that reason, I actually tend to believe the rumors that something more serious than Kerr thinking he's not good enough for the rotation is behind what's going on.
If they have an agreed under-the-table trade with another team, both sides may not want to risk an injury, or the Warriors might not want to give the other team an excuse to back out or reduce compensation due to poor play.
Maybe not the only scenario that accounts for all known facts, but certainly one of them.
Are the cap rules different for a s&t than if they sign JK and then trade him mid-season (only 50% of outgoing salary counts for Warriors, but 100% of incoming for the other team)?
I really, really doubt it. But if so, that's a really bad look...
"Look JK, Jimmy's gonna be on the floor 40-42 minutes, and it's really not been a great fit with you and him on the floor together. Let's get you in every single minute Jimmy sits."
Agree that Gui is probably a better fit for the specific role at this point, given that JK has never really fit that role. But there's no evidence that JK has been offered and rejected the role.
https://dubnationhq.com/p/7-warriors-stun-2-rockets-win-by hi new post kthxbai
Was Tobías Harris ever a winning player?? Detroit going to lose agin in the clutch
Detroit up 55-49 at half time over the Knicks - lets see if they can keep their poise tonight
Next hate watch is in 1.5 hours at 7pm PST.
I’m actually excited for that game
What adjustments will Ty Lue make? Kawhi looked good in the 1st half, but r/NBA users mentioned that Kawhi looked exhausted in the 2nd half. It looked like Denver's altitude affected him the most out of all of the players.
What adjustments do you think Udoka will make in game 2? My guesses:
-More touches for Sengun. He was pretty effective out there, so I assume Udoka will have Sengun shoot or facilitate more.
-More minutes for Jabari Smith Jr.. He looked fantastic in limited minutes and was the reason why the Rockets were making a run in the 2nd half. I won't be surprised if Udoka has Smith Jr. start game 2 in place of Thompson.
-Have FVV and J. Green facilitate more instead of shooting. This is easier said than done. I'm not sure how Houston's backcourt will be able to do this since they are trigger happy.
-Maybe play Aaron Holiday? He was good against us this season and is useful if he's hitting his threes. But that's a huge "if." If he's not hitting threes, then he's basically Bad FVV 2.0.
I expect them to be extremely physical. I expect some of our guys to literally get thrown to the floor and for them to take the tech. Hopefully, they don't injure someone trying to make their statement.
I expect the Warriors to have a plan for this too. Kerr certainly made it sound like he intends to have his guys ready for Houston's tactics.
Yeah full on tackling is going to happen. They called a total of only 32 fouls in that superphysical game - league average is 38 per game. Tomorrow is going to be even worse I think. My MAJOR WORRY is you know what!
Play Steven Adams as much as he's physically capable
I'm not so sure. Adams gives a lot but takes away a lot. His best -- I should say only scoring threats are a putback or wide open dunk. He can't create, he can't space, no one guards him. Not a passer, not a dribbler. These things make it much easier for the Warrior defense. So, a mixed bag. That's why I agree more that Jabari Smith is the call because he can also outrebound us, but he can score and make plays.
Hope you're right. He was a game changer in Gm 1, hope the Warriors can adjust.
Good idea, but according to Rockets fans, Adams has not been able to play more than 25 mins/game due to a season-ending surgery on his PCL that sidelined him for the entire 2023-24 season.
And he's a <50% FT shooter in the last two years, so you can easily hack him.
- Actually full on tackle Steph every possession, and hope they don't call it (they won't)
Sneakily sweep the leg
Can we all just admit at this point that with the Warriors having turned their season around and now won the first game of the playoffs as a 7 seed facing a 2 seed, Coach Kerr just might know what he's doing?
I'm almost there. One more ring ought to be enough to convince me.
You’re such a soft touch. I want to see Kerr on the court setting screens for Steph.
Kerr is the best active coach in the NBA and he’s disrespected almost as much as Curry
He's disrespected WAY more than Curry. Not sure he's #1, but he's in the top tier with Spo, Lue, Daigneault, and I guess Mazzulla?
If that’s the top tier than he’s definitely number 1. Throwing Daigneault in there is generous imo
Spo is generally considered the best in the league. I think Lue is excellent. Kerr right up there tho.
Spo and Kerr are the best, but I put Kerr above him. Both have been to the finals 6 times.
Never mind who you had on your team. 4 rings as a coach is 4 rings. He’s still top tier and Spo might be the only one outside of Pop that’s peers with Steve.
Yeah! Name another coach with 4 rings who didn't have amazing players ...
I mean the dude is human and makes mistakes. But 95% of time he knows what he's doing. At the same time does he have 4 rings with the Warriors without taking risks?
Amen, but I've been singing that tune (kerr is a great coach) for years.
How Steph Curry Blew Up The Rockets In Game 1 | NBA Western Conference Playoffs | BBallBreakdown: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkezeLlUaSA
"warriors in 5" has a nice ring to it.
Warriors in 4 has an even better ring. Win it at Chase -- while I'm in the stadium!
He meant, warriors in 5, as in 5 rings
Simmons woke up and chose violence today.
r/nba
nba-1
32 min. ago
luka274
Simmons on Westbrook 3pt: "I don't think I've ever seen anyone left more open at any level of basketball in any game I've ever watched in my life including girls high school basketball in the 8th grade"
While throwing girls and Westbrook under the bus at the same time, did he really say that 8th grade is high school?
Yup.
He needed to throw girls under the bus to make his point? Is this Ben Simmons - the NBA player who barely plays basketball?
If Ben Simmons started throwing shade about the amount of space given a jump shooter, it would be pretty hilarious.
Bill Simmons.
https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/1k4qusj/simmons_on_westbrook_3pt_i_dont_think_ive_ever/
He’s smarter than that. What a d.
This is probably a good time to refer back to the pioneering work of Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, (1967), in which she outlined “The Five Stages of Kuminga Grief.”
1. Denial: “it’s just matchups, Kerr will play him next game.” “he’s just coming off of injury.”
2. Anger: “Kerr is a fool, the Warriors don’t know what a gem they’ve got.” “ If Kerr even asks him to play in garbage time I hope Kuminga tells him to fuck off.”
3. Bargaining: “I don’t need to see him start. I don’t even need to see him play 20 minutes a game. One minute, just one? How about a shot of him smiling on the bench?” Or “Maybe everyone else will foul out and Kerr will be forced to play him?” Or “I promise he’ll rebound more and always always pass it to Steph when he’s open.”
4. Depression: “I’m never going to see him fly in for a dunk again” “ Even if the Warriors win the championship, what does it matter, anyway?” “No one even listens when I advocate for him.” “No one cares about what I want.” “No one loves me.” “What does it even matter? In five million years the Earth will be swallowed up by the Sun and all traces of Kuminga’s professional career will evaporate.”
5. Acceptance: …..
I wouldn’t know, I’m not there yet.
thanks asher. brought a big smile to my face. this is some of your best work, and that’s saying something.
That’s very kind of you, thank you.
I still think he might play lol
I hope you will find it a comfort that the Sun will not go supernova for 5 *billion* years.
I was wondering which one it was as I was posting and I thought “Surely no one will bother to look this up.”
The Sun not named Steph Curry you mean.
Steph is a Warrior, not a Sun
Steph contains multitudes
Glad to see you’re working through it.
My therapist says that I’m “not a complete failure, you have some moderately acceptably attributes,” and that’s been helping a lot
What a support structure.
The NBA settled some tiebreak scenarios for the draft today, firming up some details from the Jimmy Butler trade: The Warriors will send the 20th overall pick in the upcoming draft to the Heat and will receive the 41st overall pick. @anthonyVslater
Worth it.
Given the stage of grief you're in, is it too early to ask if they'd take a re-signed JK for Wiggs?
Broadcast team for game 2: Golden State Warriors vs Houston Rockets, Game 2: Brian Anderson, Stan Van Gundy, Lauren Jbara
Oh wow, where do you find that?
https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/1k4o52h/nba_playoff_announcers_schedules_though_thursday/
My gawd, reddit has almost everything. Thanks.
Their cooking sub reddits have been a lifesaver for me.
nba.com power rankings: https://www.nba.com/news/power-rankings-2024-25-playoffs-first-round
Warriors vault up to 4th moving up five spots.
Pretty sure it's moving up from #5 to #4... for instance, Memphis probably dropped from #12 to #15, and not dropped 12 spots.
Their own poll has the warriors moving up five spots from the last poll.
From the article:
> Movement in the Rankings
High jumps of the week: Miami (+4), Denver (+2), Minnesota (+2)
Free falls of the week: L.A. Lakers (-3), Memphis (-3), Houston (-2)
Film Breakdown: How Steph Curry picked apart Rockets defense in Warriors game 1 win | NBA Playoffs | Hoops Tonight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNk4xbnQ5Mw
I just rewatched the 4th (I was busy decompensating in realtime), and noticed one thing.
For anyone who thinks the refs are out to get Dray, they could very easily have given Dray a tech in the pushing incident with Sengun. It would have been a stretch, but a mild one. Sengun was backing off (though I imagine he was saying plenty).
In general, the reffing was pretty good last night, IMHO.
I thought the refs did the right thing in being there and diffusing the situation without assessing any additional fouls.
I thought Sengun was straight up baiting Dray, twice pushing him, and the refs got what was happening
I'm sure that's part of the game plan from Udoka.
When is Sengun gonna wrap his entire body around Dray's ankle?
When Dray's foot is in his chest...
Just to make sure we're on the same page... Saboner started that isht by wrapping his entire body around Dray's ankle, which caused Dray to need to forcefully remove his foot from his grasp (or break an ankle falling over), which led to Dray losing his balance and getting super pissed off and losing his cool.
undoubtedly.
If so, it was pretty mild (hanging on to him a bit long, that kind of thing). Nothing at all out of the ordinary for the playoffs.
If you look in slow motion, Sengun tries the same scummy trick he did from the last game, where he hooks under Dray’s arm to try to pretend Dray hits him in the face. I lost a lot of respect for Sengun after that move.
Yup, and neither was Dray pushing back. As long as he doesn't push back and let his elbow rise up to Sengun's jaw, they'll be fine.
Don't worry, G2 is coming. Villon will be coming out in full force, not just the sly little pushes in the back or the marginal sliding under Steph's shot, and Sengun seems like he wants to show the bully he's got something too.
If Green is gambling that the refs are going to give him a pass because it’s the playoff, then he needs to think twice and thrice. I wish he would just concentrate his energy on the game and not give in to his emotions. He could cause us to lose a game.
*Championship
I'm pretty sure they are trying to avoid becoming part of the story as long as possible. What with the pre-series talking points of physicality, and the assholery of Dray, Brooks, Sengun, and all... the longer they can put off becoming a big part of the series narrative, the better. And not giving soft technicals is a great way to avoid becoming part of the story.
Agree. The refs let A LOT of stuff go on both sides.
Like the travel by Podz. The Rockets fans in the stadium were shouting when he shuffled his feet.
Pretty sure he wasn't supposed to be allowed to put that last foot back down...
MT’s article “How Moses Moody became the Warriors’ go-to player for a pivotal defensive role” in The Athletic is a really good read.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6292195/2025/04/19/moses-moody-golden-state-warriors-defense-playoffs/?source=athletic_thebounce_newsletter&campaign=13272884&userId=2283944
Some excerpts from the article:
Moody compensates for whatever lateral quickness he lacks by employing his strength and 7-foot-1 wingspan. The Warriors have honed his technique to take away the space between him and the ballhandler while still being hard to get around.
He no longer leans forward when he guards. He spreads his arms out more often, instead of the arm-bar. He puts his weight onto the often-lighter guard.
And the activator of all these elements is aggressiveness. Moody isn’t worried about getting beat. He’s focused on dictating.
(assistant coach) Weems taught Moody a tactic he learned from Wes Unseld Jr. He called it “tactile touch.” Hit the ballhandler on the left shoulder. Tap his right elbow. Swipe at the ball. Tap his hip. Hit his left shoulder. Swipe at the ball. Swipe at the ball again. Every touch forces the ballhandler to adjust. Make him pivot. Make him switch hands. Make him turn his back. Put him on the defensive.
“Making the guy move the ball around,” Weems said, “and feel uncomfortable. I think that’s what Moses does now, really well.”
After the trade to acquire Butler, Moody’s 109 deflections were the fourth-most in the NBA behind Atlanta’s Dyson Daniels (156), Sacramento’s Keon Ellis (115) and the Los Angeles Clippers’ Kris Dunn (112) — all reputed defensive specialists. From Feb. 8 on, the Warriors led the NBA in steals and had five players totaling at least 30 — Draymond Green (59), Butler (50), Moody (38), Stephen Curry (35) and Brandin Podziemski (32).
I have noticed that GP-II never stands still when guarding either. Always shifting and probing. Actually I think Loon-dawg is a good example too. If nothing else it can burn a lot of shot clock.
The amount Dyson Daniels is ahead of everyone else is pretty insane
I was just gonna say the same thing haha
Has JK told the Warriors he'd rather sit than play 7-8 minutes a game in a Gui Santos role?
Per TK on plus minus, JK looked upbeat and tuned in following the game yesterday. Maybe something changed behind the scenes.
Was told he'll get sign and traded to his team of choice /s
Maybe that means he’ll get a chance, but he’s just gotta embrace his role and he’ll be an important piece
So I talked to a friend who’s been a local beat reporter since 2008 for some insight on the Kuminga situation. He didn’t cover basketball, but I figured his instinct on the situation might give an interesting perspective.
He took one look at the whole situation and told me it all smelled like Kuminga/Warriors FO competing to take control of the narrative. After learning that he wasn’t a part of the playoff rotation, Kuminga taking shots on the court after the game in full view of the public instead of a private facility was likely a deliberate attempt to put pressure on the coaching staff to give him minutes. The cavalcade of reports by local beat reporters who all of a sudden are being fed stories about Kuminga’s apparent poor play and being withdrawn from the team coming all once was likely info leaked by the FO to control the narrative from their end.
Obviously this is all conjecture, but it was interesting conjecture for me!
controlling the narrative doesn't really explain why he's sitting, though. It just explains the rumors.
If it was just that JK's out of the rotation, but still going to play spot minutes, I think they'd have said something to that effect.
So far, the only one who's said anything like that is Green (and I think he doesn't necessarily know).
For that reason, I actually tend to believe the rumors that something more serious than Kerr thinking he's not good enough for the rotation is behind what's going on.
If they have an agreed under-the-table trade with another team, both sides may not want to risk an injury, or the Warriors might not want to give the other team an excuse to back out or reduce compensation due to poor play.
Maybe not the only scenario that accounts for all known facts, but certainly one of them.
Are the cap rules different for a s&t than if they sign JK and then trade him mid-season (only 50% of outgoing salary counts for Warriors, but 100% of incoming for the other team)?
Seems extremely unlikely. What is MDJ going to do .. tell Kerr in the playoffs, 'no, you can't play Kuminga, we have a deal for him'?
I think he's signed on to play the role of Two Face. Oh wait what
I really, really doubt it. But if so, that's a really bad look...
"Look JK, Jimmy's gonna be on the floor 40-42 minutes, and it's really not been a great fit with you and him on the floor together. Let's get you in every single minute Jimmy sits."
"Nah, coach."
Kinda seems like the case, though I'd argue Gui is actually better in that specific role.
Agree that Gui is probably a better fit for the specific role at this point, given that JK has never really fit that role. But there's no evidence that JK has been offered and rejected the role.