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The Golden State Warriors, to a man, have projected unwavering confidence after Game 1 of the NBA Finals. The two-time defending champions, apparently, believe there's more room for them to improve than there is reason to worry about the specter of falling behind 0-2, without home-court advantage, as Kevin Durant's status going forward remains up in the air.
Why? Coach Steve Kerr elaborated on the justification behind the Warriors' sense of calm on Saturday, singling out transition defense and turnovers as areas his team should be able to clean up for Sunday's Game 2. He also allowed for the possibility of DeMarcus Cousins getting more of a chance to make an impact.
Kerr reiterated what big key for Game 2 is —transition defense. Warriors are confident that if they do better in that area and take care of the ball they’ll be right where they need to be. Kerr also noted that they’ll look back at the tape and see if they can use Cousins more.
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) June 1, 2019
The Raptors had 24 fast-break points in Game 1. Pascal Siakam scored 10 points in transition all by himself, out-running everyone one on the floor for uncontested layups and taking full advantage by filling the wing when one of his teammates pushed the ball with a numbers advantage. If Golden State puts more of an emphasis on shutting down Toronto's open-floor attack, there's reason to believe it won't be as big a factor in the future. One tradeoff worth monitoring: Fewer second-chance opportunities, which Kerr's team absolutely feasted on Thursday night.
The Warriors' turnover issues in Game 1, though, might be harder to alleviate. The Raptors are stacked with long, smart, quality defenders who can guard multiple positions and play whatever style circumstances of time and score dictate. It was a slog offensively in the halfcourt for Golden State in Game 1, and without Durant, there just isn't a surefire way for the Warriors to better protect the ball than simply focusing on doing so.
Cousins, though, really could be a swing factor. Golden State needs all the offensive punch it can get without Durant, especially at the beginning of the second and fourth quarters when Klay Thompson is normally the only legitimate threat on the floor. If Cousins is up for the challenge from a conditioning perspective, don't be surprised if Kerr gives him some more playing time against the Raptors' second unit in Game 2.
