“Let’s not act like Steph Curry isn’t the center of their universe” - JJ Redick says Steph Curry is the system, believes the Warriors are at their best with contributions from role players
When Steph Curry and the Warriors took down the Celtics in Game 2, we saw yet another brilliant third quarter from the Warriors this post-season, a 35-14 quarter which ended on a 19-2 run with a 40-foot dagger from Jordan Poole.
Klay Thompson, on the other hand, failed to show up, shooting a mere 21.1% from the field. JJ Redick, on ESPN's "Get Up," talked about whether Klay's figurative absence on the court puts more pressure on Curry:
"The Warriors are at their best when they're getting contributions from not just Klay but all of their role-players and so Andrew Wiggins is going to have to play well, Jordan Poole is gonna have to play well.
"Let's not act like Steph Curry isn't the center of their universe at all times and people talk about 'Steph Curry in this system,' Steph Curry is the system."
"Their entire offense is built around him. I actually love the adjustment they made last night. They had so much success in Game 1 playing high pick-and-rolls against drop coverage and they just went to it again and again in that third-quarter, and that's what really got their offense going."
Steph Curry and company faced a similar defensive effort from the Celtics, the only difference was the volume
The Boston Celtics fell to the Warriors in Game 2 of the NBA Finals 107-88, and will now return to Boston with the series tied 1-1.
The defense that the Celtics put on display in Game 2 was similar to that in Game 1, but the Warriors shot the ball well-enough to circumvent the physical and suffocating defense of Boston.
Player-tracking from Games 1 and 2 revealed that even with a defender in their face, the Warriors were able to shoot at a high volume efficiently.
DFGM/DFGA for the Boston Celtics from Games 1 and 2:
The Celtics defended at an efficiency around 42-43% for both the games, but the Warriors just took more shots in Game 2, creating a 29-point deficit at the start of the fourth quarter.
Subsequently, garbage time came early for Boston, and the white flags were raised from the bench of the aw y-team as all the starters were substituted early in the fourth quarter and the bench players finished the game down 19.