Look, anyone with eyes can see that the Cavaliers are simply outmatched in this years NBA Finals. This team is the worst team LeBron has brought to the Finals since his first trip back in 2007. I think we all knew the Warriors were going to win another Championship, and with four future Hall of Famers, they are probably going to be in contention for several more years.
The problem here - besides everyone on the Cavs not named LeBron playing terrible basketball - is the defense. We al know that Cleveland ranked second-to-last in defensive ratings this season (Phoenix was the worst), but it's the nature of their defensive l;apses that are killing them.
Curry and Co. can't have any room to shoot, when they do they make you pay. The Warriors are comprised of some of the best shooters ever and it's clear that any team would have trouble covering them. Where Cleveland goes wrong, is when they switch off the pick-and-roll and create mismatches. Let's look.
Here we see Durant on an easy dunk. Who is covering him? JR Smith. The problem, is that JR is no match to cover Durant one-on-one.
The Warriors - and Steve Kerr - are smart. They recognize the mismatches and they play for them. Curry brings it up ad is met with a screen by one of the big men like Durant, or JaVale McGee or Draymond. Curry's primary defender is then forced to switch onto the big man while the likes of Kevin Love, or Tristan Thompson are left to try and dance with Curry. And we all know how that plays out.
Like this
Or this
That leaves Durant to go to work on the likes of JR, George Hill or Clarkson - who is playing like an actual child in this series. The result...this
There is no easy solution to the Warriors. We all know that, but what the Cavaliers are doing is not helping. They are self-inflicted wounds and they don't seem to learn from them. When you have Hill or Smith covering all 7'0 of Durant, you know he is going to abuse them offensively. If you have Tristan or Love on Curry, you know he is going to make them dance.
Cleveland needs to get better at communicating the defensive assignments on pick-and-rolls because Golden State isn't going to stop using them anytime soon, and you know they love the idea of Durant waltzing into the lane for easy buckets.
What did you think of Game 2? Does Cleveland have a chance? Comment below!