THIS Is How The Raptors EXPOSED The Warriors: NBA Finals Game 1
When watching the first game of the Finals, I noticed a few key things that led the Raptors to their convincing game 1 victory over the Golden State Warriors. The three main things that guided the Raptors to the win that I noticed was the Warriors’ poor transition defense, the Raptors defense on Steph Curry, and of course, Pascal Siakam.
First off, the Raptors aggressiveness in transition became potent when paired with the Warriors’ lackluster transition defense. Over the course of the game, the Raptors tallied a total of 24 fast break points. And many of these fast break points came off of simple outlet passes that kept the ball moving the whole time it traveled down the court.
For example, look at how the Raptors attack in transition in this play midway through the first quarter. Gasol comes down with the rebound after the missed shot. Notice how every single Warriors defender is ahead of the ball after the rebound and even after Gasol passes it to Lowry. But the Raptors stayed aggressive and caught Danny Green streaking towards the basket. If you look closely, you can see how Curry’s quick defensive lapse leads to the easy bucket for the Raptors. Curry needs to make an effort to get out in front of Danny Green instead of being content to trail behind him.
In this next play, notice how aggressively Lowry attacks the basket. Lowry gets the rebound and immediately begins pushing the ball up the court. The Warriors actually played decent transition defense on this play, but Lowry’s aggressiveness gets him the points, anyway. It’s important to note that most times, NBA players would have slowed the fast break down once the notice that the opposing team has four guys ahead of them. But it seems like the Raptors were purposefully attacking in transition, even when the were outnumbered.
Also, the Raptors continued to keep this high intensity going throughout the whole game. On this play, watch how quickly the Raptors get down the court. As Lowry gets the rebound, he immediately begins pushing the pace. This play illustrates some of the struggles that the Warriors defense had during transition. Klay should have tried to pick up Siakam down the court because Siakam had already beaten Cook, and Lowry should have been Jerebko’s man. Instead, Siakam beats Cook down the floor and is able to finish the easy layup.
The next key to the Raptors’ win was their tight defense on the Steph Curry. In the first few minutes of the first quarter, it looked like Curry was going to get open shots all game. He knocked down three three pointers in the first eight minutes of the game and he showed no signs of slowing down. But after this first quarter, the Raptors made a good adjustment of closing the openings for Curry.
Watch on this play how Ibaka comes up to help when Looney screens for Curry. Initially, Ibaka is sagging off of Looney because he is not a threat as a shooter. But as soon as Ibaka sees Looney setting the screen for Curry, Ibaka shifts up so that he can help contest Curry into a miss.
Defense like this is what led the Raptors control much of the game. Also, it’s not necessarily that the Raptors defense was forcing Curry to miss shots, it was that they weren’t even allowing him to take them. In the first quarter alone, Curry attempted six three pointers. But he only attempted three more three pointers for the rest of the game. This was important for the Raptors because it prevented the Warriors going on one of their explosive, three point fueled runs like the frequently did against Portland in the Western Conference Finals.
The last key to the Raptors’ win in game one was, of course, Pascal Siakam. Siakam was phenomenal in game one, and there was little the Warriors could do to stop him. He shot a blistering 14 for 17 from the field, and controlled the game for the Raptors when Kawhi Leonard was having somewhat of an off night.
For example, on this play Siakam isolates against Draymond Green, who happens to be one of the NBA’s best defenders. Siakam chooses to drive right at Green and is able to finish the tough, contested, left-handed layup.
Once again, Siakam drives right at the Warriors defense and finishes the ridiculous bank shot against the tight defense. Siakam was unstoppable for the whole night.
Overall, it’s tough to lose a game when you have a guy on your team that shoots 14 of 17 from the field because it’s so efficient. Siakam’s efficiency played a key part in the Raptors hot shooting night where they shot 50 percent from the field.
All in all, the Raptors were in control throughout the majority of the game and did not seem to be fazed by the two-time defending champs. But it will be interesting to see how the Warriors respond after the game 1 loss. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Warriors played with more urgency in game 2 than they did in game 1. On the other hand, it will be interesting to see if the Raptors can continue to keep up the intensity for the rest of the Finals.
When watching the first game of the Finals, I noticed a few key things that led the Raptors to their convincing game 1 victory over the Golden State Warriors. The three main things that guided the Raptors to the win that I noticed was the Warriors’ poor transition defense, the Raptors defense on Steph Curry, and of course, Pascal Siakam.
First off, the Raptors aggressiveness in transition became potent when paired with the Warriors’ lackluster transition defense. Over the course of the game, the Raptors tallied a total of 24 fast break points. And many of these fast break points came off of simple outlet passes that kept the ball moving the whole time it traveled down the court.
For example, look at how the Raptors attack in transition in this play midway through the first quarter. Gasol comes down with the rebound after the missed shot. Notice how every single Warriors defender is ahead of the ball after the rebound and even after Gasol passes it to Lowry. But the Raptors stayed aggressive and caught Danny Green streaking towards the basket. If you look closely, you can see how Curry’s quick defensive lapse leads to the easy bucket for the Raptors. Curry needs to make an effort to get out in front of Danny Green instead of being content to trail behind him.
In this next play, notice how aggressively Lowry attacks the basket. Lowry gets the rebound and immediately begins pushing the ball up the court. The Warriors actually played decent transition defense on this play, but Lowry’s aggressiveness gets him the points, anyway. It’s important to note that most times, NBA players would have slowed the fast break down once the notice that the opposing team has four guys ahead of them. But it seems like the Raptors were purposefully attacking in transition, even when the were outnumbered.
Also, the Raptors continued to keep this high intensity going throughout the whole game. On this play, watch how quickly the Raptors get down the court. As Lowry gets the rebound, he immediately begins pushing the pace. This play illustrates some of the struggles that the Warriors defense had during transition. Klay should have tried to pick up Siakam down the court because Siakam had already beaten Cook, and Lowry should have been Jerebko’s man. Instead, Siakam beats Cook down the floor and is able to finish the easy layup.
The next key to the Raptors’ win was their tight defense on the Steph Curry. In the first few minutes of the first quarter, it looked like Curry was going to get open shots all game. He knocked down three three pointers in the first eight minutes of the game and he showed no signs of slowing down. But after this first quarter, the Raptors made a good adjustment of closing the openings for Curry.
Watch on this play how Ibaka comes up to help when Looney screens for Curry. Initially, Ibaka is sagging off of Looney because he is not a threat as a shooter. But as soon as Ibaka sees Looney setting the screen for Curry, Ibaka shifts up so that he can help contest Curry into a miss.
Defense like this is what led the Raptors control much of the game. Also, it’s not necessarily that the Raptors defense was forcing Curry to miss shots, it was that they weren’t even allowing him to take them. In the first quarter alone, Curry attempted six three pointers. But he only attempted three more three pointers for the rest of the game. This was important for the Raptors because it prevented the Warriors going on one of their explosive, three point fueled runs like the frequently did against Portland in the Western Conference Finals.
The last key to the Raptors’ win in game one was, of course, Pascal Siakam. Siakam was phenomenal in game one, and there was little the Warriors could do to stop him. He shot a blistering 14 for 17 from the field, and controlled the game for the Raptors when Kawhi Leonard was having somewhat of an off night.
For example, on this play Siakam isolates against Draymond Green, who happens to be one of the NBA’s best defenders. Siakam chooses to drive right at Green and is able to finish the tough, contested, left-handed layup.
Once again, Siakam drives right at the Warriors defense and finishes the ridiculous bank shot against the tight defense. Siakam was unstoppable for the whole night.
Overall, it’s tough to lose a game when you have a guy on your team that shoots 14 of 17 from the field because it’s so efficient. Siakam’s efficiency played a key part in the Raptors hot shooting night where they shot 50 percent from the field.
All in all, the Raptors were in control throughout the majority of the game and did not seem to be fazed by the two-time defending champs. But it will be interesting to see how the Warriors respond after the game 1 loss. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Warriors played with more urgency in game 2 than they did in game 1. On the other hand, it will be interesting to see if the Raptors can continue to keep up the intensity for the rest of the Finals.
