Portland Trail Blazers v Golden State Warriors: A Recap

Portland Trail Blazers v Golden State Warriors

There is a new rivalry in the NBA. The Portland Trailblazers and The Golden State Warriorswent head to head tonight in what was a very physical game. A fight broke out in the 3rd quarter which resulted in Mo Williams, Wesley Matthews and Draymond Green drawing ejections.The Warriors led by three going into the 4th, but the Blazers finished off the Warriors 113-101. This was a statement game for the Blazers who showed they are a legitimate contender in the West. The Blazers are built very similar to the Warriors offensively. They have an exciting scoring point guard, a great jump shooting 2 guard, a 3-point shooting athletic small forward, a scoring power forward and a defensive center. What truly separates these two teams is their ability on the defensive end. The Warriors held the Blazers to 42% shooting for the game. Anytime you hold a team under 45% you should give yourself a very good chance to win the game. Of course, the Warriors have a better offense then the Blazers when Andre Iguodala is on the floor, but unfortunately he will be out, in my estimation, for 4-6 weeks.

The Blazers just wanted this game more than the Warriors. They dominated every hustle statistic and brought down 8 more offensive rebounds, while forcing the Warriors into 5 more turnovers. It was good to see Steph Curry back on the floor. He was an excellent scorer and distributor for the Warriors. I have written this before and I will write it again, Steph Curry is the catalyst for everybody in this offense. He draws the best perimeter defender on every team, allowing his counterpart, 6’7” Klay Thompson to have a mismatch every night. His penetration sets up wide open looks for Harrison Barnes and David Lee. His pick and roll game withAndrew Bogut is one of the most dangerous in the league. Without him, this Warriors offense is non-existent.

It doesn’t look like this Warriors team is going to be completely healthy anytime soon, so they are going to have to start winning with the players they have. I saw some positive play fromNemanja Nedovic, who did a nice job in the back-up point guard role tonight. Draymond Green was providing solid minutes like he does every night until he was ejected. The bench talk leads me perfectly into Matt’s home improvements.

Matt’s Home Improvements

-The key to the bench is Marreese Speights. The Warriors brought him in to replace Carl Landry, who was just as effective as Jarrett Jack last season. Landry provided important bench scoring and brought down some big rebounds. Landry was a gamer and Speights, in his very short tenure, has proved he is not. I am fine with him shooting mid-range, but when you play power-forward in the NBA you must be able to make contested lay-ups. Until he starts providing the spark off the bench that he provided the Grizzlies with the last few seasons, the Warriors are in trouble.

-It’s official; I no longer like David Lee. I understand that he is a great guy, he gives 110%, and he is a leader for this team but he is not clutch on the basketball court. In the 4th quarter tonight, down two, the Warriors went to David Lee. He proceeded to get blocked by LaMarcus Aldridge who dominated him on the boards tonight. He then turned it over a few possessions later and complained for an and-one. I think David Lee is a solid player, but for an all-star he struggles to create his own shot and turns the ball over too much. Once Andre Iguodala comes back, the Warriors need to start playing a crunch time line-up of Steph, Klay, Iguo, Barnes and Bogut. Mark my words, that line-up is the best one the Warriors can put on the floor and the one that will win us games against good teams.

LaMarcus Aldrige was absolutely dominate on the boards last night.

-Finally, a theme has started to develop for the Warriors late in games. It is exactly how the Warriors played last year in the playoffs as well. They play solid team basketball in the first half holding somewhere around a five point lead. Steph then decides he doesn’t want to miss a shot in the 3rd quarter and the Warriors jump out to a large lead. Tonight it was a 13 point lead half way through the 3rd. The Warriors then lose all offensive consistency. It’s almost as if the Warriors change their attitude towards they game. Instead of trying to win they play not to lose once they are up big. It’s something that needs to change and it starts with the head coach Mark Jackson.

It was a tough loss and hopefully the Warriors can rebound on this difficult road trip they have ahead of them. This next test against New Orleans will be a tough one. Until then, peace out!