Biggest Takeaways from Golden State Warriors' 2015 NBA Playoffs Debut
The Golden State Warriors made their 2015 NBA playoffs debut by running through the gamut of emotions. What looked to be a blowout turned into a gut-wrenching 106-99 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on April 18.
As the top seed, Golden State went into Game 1 with huge expectations. The last time it had home-court advantage was in 1991-92, when the team held the No. 3 seed and lost to the Seattle Supersonics in Game 1—and eventually the series.
This go-around was fueled with the Warriors Ground (the home fans) giving the opponent a rude awakening with deafening crowd noise.
As Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle tweeted, Oracle Arena was ready with “Strength in Numbers” T-shirts.
What Is Working
The Dubs started in their usual fashion by moving the ball effectively. Stephen Curry and Andrew Bogut ignited the motion offense that had the team off and running.
Golden State quickly seized control with screens and dribble drives to the hoop through the confused Pelicans defense. The switches by New Orleans left bigger and slower defenders on Curry, who had his way in the first half.
As you can see from the video, Curry takes advantage of center Alexis Ajinca, who got stuck with the role.
The Warriors shot the three-pointer, but the spacing and ball movement put the Pelicans in a bind. The extra pass gave Bogut and Draymond Green easy opportunities near the rim.
A 25-point lead was the apex of the performance, which occurred in the third quarter.
Golden State outscored New Orleans 50-42 in the paint by looking a step quicker. New Orleans’ Anthony Davis was limited in his production in the first three quarters, grabbing only one rebound.
Per John Reid of the New Orleans Times-Picayune, Davis understands his difficult matchups:
"It's tough; you see Draymond there and Bogut just waiting for me to come. We just try to adjust, starting getting it at the elbow, whoever our other big is going to be open under the basket. So you've got to make adjustments and go back and watch film to see how we can be a better as a unit to try and counter what they do.
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Davis was isolated on offense through much of the first three quarters. He didn’t have the necessary ball movement or help from his court mates.
The fourth quarter was a different story.
The Warriors also had success with the transition game. Steals, blocks and quick clear-outs resulted in easy hoops and more mismatches.
In the video below, Curry steals the ball, drives the court and sneaks past Davis to lob it off the backboard for the bucket and the foul.
The Warriors kept building the momentum through the third quarter before things started to fall apart.
What Needs Improvement
Golden State looked like it was heading to a typical home finish, where Curry wouldn’t even step on the floor in the fourth quarter. A 7-0 run by the Pelicans at the end of the third quarter changed the momentum and quieted the crowd.
New Orleans made adjustments that the Warriors couldn't handle. Golden State took their foot off the gas and got stuck in neutral.
Davis shifted over to the 5, Asik played less and the Pels opened the floor. The Warriors didn’t score for the first three-plus minutes of the final quarter and had a lot of one-shot possessions.
The Pelicans made some serious runs and started building their confidence for the remainder of the series by getting the lead down to four points late in the fourth quarter.
Davis is the primary weapon for the Pelicans, and Golden State needs to learn how to stop him on the pick-and-roll. He and Norris Cole make a solid combination.
Marcus Thompson of the San Jose Mercury News breaks down Davis’ success with that play.
Free Throws
One of the basic areas where the Warriors struggled was at the free-throw line. Both Curry and Klay Thompson were below average from the charity stripe.
The team converted only 61.8 percent of its freebies. Curry and Thompson both missed three of their attempts, and Andre Iguodala made half of his six tries.
The Pelicans targeted Iguodala in the fourth quarter in order to take advantage of his inconsistencies.
The Warriors need to concentrate a little harder and make sure they earn the free points. They may need them in a tight game.
The Bench
Head coach Steve Kerr didn’t go heavily to his bench, except for the use of Iguodala. Shaun Livingston, Leandro Barbosa, Festus Ezeli and Marreese Speights were the others to participate.
Livingston played 13 minutes, but his effort was subpar. Curry was forced into a 40-minute game as a result.
Kerr didn’t use Ezeli or Speights for extended periods, either. "Mo Buckets" earned less than a minute of play.
Coach Kerr will need to do a better job with substitutions moving forward. Part of the problem with limiting bench players is that there is a lack of cohesiveness between the sub and his new playing mates.
Per Jimmy Smith of the New Orleans Times-Picayune, Kerr talked about his rotations:
"It wasn't an individual thing. It was any time you have a group on the floor, they have to collectively execute. Both the second and fourth quarters, we didn't do a good job of getting good shots for each other. So that's why I went back to Steph earlier. I kept Shaun in the game for much of the second quarter with Steph and Klay because I like that combination too. But in the fourth we just kind of stuck with Andre and Klay and Steph in the back court.
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Overall Performance
No matter what happened during this roller-coaster ride, the Warriors have a 1-0 advantage in the series. They need to make certain corrections and be ready for Game 2 on April 20.
Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News got Green’s quick summation of the performance:
Kerr and his assistants will have to do a better job of game-planning for Davis by trying to get him into more isolation situations and limiting his opportunities in the paint.
The Pelicans may be without Tyreke Evans because of a bone bruise in his left knee for Game 2. That injury may slow down the offense, but the Warriors have to be ready.
The last-minute win may have been a good wake-up call for the team. It is a 48-minute game, and in the playoffs, the Warriors have to finish.
They have the heavy burden of being title favorites. Now it’s time to prove everybody right.
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