Cavaliers simply a difficult matchup for Warriors in a disastrous loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
History has shown us that success in the NBA is, above all, about talent and health and chemistry and, yes, the relationship between coaches and players. However, the truth shows us that much of this can be compensated by one factor.
Matchups.
That was evident Friday night in Cleveland, where the Warriors learned quite the lesson 136-117 loss to the Knights. The score was much closer than the destruction that took place on the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse floor.
The Warriors (7-2) fell behind early by scores of 20-2, 60-30 and 78-38 — all well before halftime. A second-half rally, mostly from the second unit, could not overcome their disastrous performance in the first half against the 10-0 Cavaliers – the league’s only undefeated team.
Although Golden State’s downfall can be attributed to shoddy work on both ends, much of it was due to the problems presented by a Cavaliers defense with two players, center. Jarrett Allen and forward Evan Mobleystanding a shade under 7 feet and possessing pterodactyl-like wingspans.
“You have two great edge protectors in Mobley and Allen,” Brandin Podziemski told reporters in Cleveland. “We didn’t make them work at all. We just settled for, ‘Oh, we see them, let’s get past it.’ Sometimes, you have to take it at them and see what they got.”
The Warriors did seem uninterested in testing Allen and Mobley in the half court. So, they tried to pass the big men in hopes of getting their offense going before Cleveland could set up its defense. This resulted in a series of risky and wayward passes, most of which turned into turnovers (13) that gave the Cavs 15 first-half points.
It looked familiar. As much as the Cavs swept the Warriors last season, winning by a combined 19 points, this was the third straight time Golden State was stymied, mostly by the impressive Allen and the even more impressive Mobley.
“We’ve seen them the last two years, and it’s the same group,” Kerr said. “They are playing at a high level now. They are young and they are growing. They should improve.”
The Warriors found no answers. Trayce Jackson-Davis, surrounded by twin towers, was overtaken. Draymond Green, listed on the morning injury report as “questionable,” didn’t look like himself. The Warriors, especially in the first half, constantly looked at the paint like it was a toxic swamp.
The result was Golden State’s first-half performance amounting to a dump.
While the Warriors’ offense has shrunk into a sort of psychological quicksand, scoring 42 points on 41 percent shooting from the field, including 31.2 percent from beyond the arc, their defense has been more leaky than ever this season. An amazing collection of blown coverages and late or slow finishes were exploited as the Cavaliers rolled up 83 first-half points, shooting 65.3 percent from the field and 63.6 percent from deep.
Meanwhile, Cleveland, which ranks 23rd in the league in rebounding, looked into Golden State’s No. 1 status and crashed its way to a 24-13 advantage on the glass.
“We didn’t make them feel us at all,” said Podziemski, who pulled down a team-high seven rebounds in 27 minutes.
“Our defense didn’t come out with enough physicality, enough edge, in the first half,” said Kevon Looney, who came off the bench to match Podziemski’s seven rebounds. “They are a really good team. They moved the ball. We let them get some easy threes to start the game, and once they got their confidence, they fired it up and shot the lights out in the first half.”
The second half was noticeably better, where the Warriors found enough energy to score more points (75-53), grab more rebounds (27-19) and force 13 turnovers – for 25 points – while making only four .
But that 42-point deficit that hung over Golden State coming out of the locker room after halftime was too much to erase. The Knights outworked the Warriors in the first half by a greater margin than the Warriors could muster in the second half.
“We have to respond,” Kerr said. “We have to practice [Saturday]. We have to execute better; we had 13 turnovers in the first half. We were completely disorganized, and that’s where I feel we need the most work. We have to continue to work on our organization and set up so we can execute and understand how to execute against a team that plays at that level defensively.”
Kerr probably doesn’t mind that Cleveland is in the Eastern Conference. The Warriors see the Cavaliers just one more time this season, on Dec. 30 at Chase Center. Assuming both rosters stay healthy and intact, it will be another challenging matchup.
“I know what I could have done better,” Kerr said. “But I’m not telling you.”
Kerr has two days to find and apply answers, because Sunday afternoon the young and impetuous Oklahoma City Thunder are built to present similar defensive challenges.
