NBA Finals 2019: 3 things the Golden State Warriors need to do to beat the Toronto Raptors

The Golden State Warriors, as of Thursday, May 30th, 2019, will embark on a journey to try and claim a 4th Larry O’Brien Trophy in five years. What makes this year’s effort different from the previous 4 years are the opponents.

It's been the norm, the expected, that Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and their Warriors teammates will face some version of the Cleveland Cavaliers led by LeBron James.

This is not the case in 2019. The Warriors are back but face a new and mysterious challenge in the Toronto Raptors. The Toronto Raptors are actually not that mysterious as over the last 5 seasons they have been an elite team in the NBA’s Eastern Conference.

In fact, Golden State’s old NBA Finals dance partner, the Cleveland Cavaliers have been responsible for eliminating the Raptors from the playoffs in the previous three seasons.

With LeBron James in Los Angeles this season, the Raptors proved it was his wizardry on the basketball court holding them back. Now, with Kawhi Leonard in their lineup, the Raptors are on a mission to not only appear in their first ever NBA Finals but win it as well.

Also Read: 3 Reasons why Toronto Raptors will win their maiden NBA Championship

During the regular season, Toronto faced the Golden State twice and won both games. One was a late November overtime thriller in which Kevin Durant scored 51 points but the Warriors were without Stephen Curry and Draymond Green in Toronto.

In mid-December at the Oracle Center, it was Toronto without Kawhi Leonard blowing out Golden State on their home-court. It’s a small sample size to judge with wild cards that may or may not mean anything. So, with a new challenge to their title here are three things Golden State needs to do to beat the Toronto Raptors:

#3 Consistency and Focus

The Golden State Warriors are capable of scoring points at a high rate. They can also defend well. Yet, one criticism that lingers with this dynasty of a team is the focus and consistency.

During the Regular season, there were 6 games in Oakland in which the Warriors suffered blowout losses on home court. OKC, Toronto, Milwaukee, Los Angeles Lakers, Boston, and Dallas all had 20 plus point wins against the Golden State.

Even if you ignore it as regular season play because it’s the playoffs that matter, Golden State has shown this tendency of inconsistent focus in the 2019 playoffs. Their first-round series against the Clippers went 6 games and one of the Warriors losses was due to a 31-point collapse. Taking nothing away from the Clippers, even the Warriors have to play 48 minutes of basketball every night.

There is also the WCF with the Warriors sweeping the Portland Trailblazers 4 straight. In three of those games, Portland held double-digit leads in the second half of those contests. One thing is a constant about the Toronto Raptors 2019 playoff run and it's that they play intense consistent defence. Golden State must stay focused and consistent in their play every game of this Finals.

#2 Play at a High Tempo

Another aspect of this series that will be interesting to watch as the series develops is the tempo of the games. Head coach Steve Kerr is blessed with a guard combo in Curry and Thompson who will run, cut and move without the ball on offence.

This has to continue against the Raptors aggressive defence. Golden State averages about 30 points per game in the playoffs combined in scoring off of cuts to the basket and off screens.

Keep two things in mind. If Leonard guards Thompson, Leonard appears banged up and has played heavy minutes this postseason. The need to chase Thompson would drain his energy and stamina when the Raptors need him most. Secondly, Raptors head coach Nick Nurse has so far shortened his bench and the fast-paced games will tire the 8 players he has predominantly employed.

Should Golden State get caught walking or standing still in their half-court offensive setups, the Raptors will force turnovers and shot clock violations. It is better to make Toronto’s defence reactionary rather than let them set the tempo.

In transition, it is also best for Golden State to run and push the play. Its all about not allowing Toronto’s defence to set up and control what Golden State wants to do. So far in these playoffs, the Warriors are averaging 19.6ppg in transition,

#1 Employ Man to Man Defense

Golden State Warriors v Portland Trail Blazers - Game Four

Golden State has good length and good team quickness. Steve Kerr should employ a man to man defensive strategy primarily. What hurt the Milwaukee Bucks in the ECF was double-teaming Kawhi Leonard.

If double-teamed, Leonard becomes a good enough facilitator making the right pass to open shooters and in the ECF it was Fred Vanvleet's 14 of his last 17 threes which torched Milwaukee. However, Leonard still scored. It’s a trap double teaming Leonard

The Raptors use a fair amount of isolation plays for Leonard and pick and roll to free up Lowry, Leonard or Vanvleet. On isolation plays, the ball is predominantly in Leonard’s hands and he will either look for foul line extended mid-range shots, attacks to the basket or a turn around step back jumper.

Knowing he will make shots, Golden State should play him man to man and stay home on the Raptors' floor spacers/shooters. It's better to have Leonard force his offence than let a so far quiet Danny Green or Marc Gasol get going offensively. The Raptors are averaging 26.2ppg in the 2019 playoffs on spot-up shooting.

Any strategy that the Warriors employ, they must play consistent defence in the 2019 NBA Finals to once again be successful.