2018 NBA Finals: 2018 NBA Finals: Cavs have no answers for hot shooting Warriors
Four passes picks up after Game 2 of the 2018 NBA Finals, as the Cleveland Cavaliers face an 0-2 deficit returning to Quicken Loans Arena.
1. The Cavs switched everything on the pick and roll and the Warriors took advantage of the matchups.
Kevin Love on Stephen Curry? Please. Curry made three of his 3′ pointer against Love. He had 33 points in the game and set the NBA Finals record with nine makes from beyond the arc.
George Hill and J.R. Smith usually switched onto Kevin Durant, who was 5-of-6 with one of them in face. He swatted them off like a fly, en route to 26 points.
2. Love played well offensively, but nothing he does screams “superstar.”
He had the game he needed to deliver, with 22 points and 10 rebounds. His 3-point shooting could still be better (3-of-8), but it’s better than the one measly three he made in Game 1.
With Love, there’s just no telling what’s going to happen, especially when the game hits a critical point.
The next time he takes over a game will be the first–at least in a Cavs uniform. Guys like LeBron James and Kyrie Irving are going to come up big when it matters most, but Love…well, it hasn’t happened.
His on again, off again play doesn’t change anything regarding the trade for Andrew Wiggins. The Cavs won a championship and Love was a key part of that team. You do it every time.
But the guy Cleveland thought they were getting Minnesota never quite showed up in full.
3. Golden State was exceptional at moving the ball, amassing 28 assists on the glass, while winning the rebounding advantage. Cleveland out rebounded the Warriors on the offensive glass, 16-7, but when the Warriors shoot 57.3 percent for the field, well, they’re unbeatable.
4. Cleveland still can’t make 3’s. After knocking down an average of 12 per game during the regular season, the Cavaliers have been hard pressed to make at least 10, lately.
When the Cavaliers don’t make 12 3’s per contest, chances are, they’re going to lose, and that’s been the case in the first two games of the 2018 NBA Finals.
JR Smith went 1-of-4 from 3-point rang in Game 2. More Kyle Korver would be nice, but he’s such a liability defensively. Jordan Clarkson barely looks like an NBA player.
Extra pass: Cavs’ country wondered how Smith would respond to the moment after blundering away Game 1 by forgetting the score.
He he come back tougher than ever, or shrink the moment?
Smith was 2-of-9 from the field. Five points in 31 points minutes. Good luck winning this series, LeBron!
Smith’s getting torched off switches defensively anyway, so why not try Korver more? It’d be more likely you’d get offense from him than Smith right now.
I wonder if Ty Lue’s going to feel desperation as the Cavs return home because if Cleveland doesn’t win both games at the Q, this series is over.
Cedi Osman and Rodney Hood’s rear-ends probably hurt from sitting so much, but why not dust them off, especially if guys like Smith and Clarkson continue to be so unproductive?