Warriors, with heart and championship game
Game and character. Talent and personality. Smiles and ferocity. All that the Golden State Warriors showed to win Game 7 of the first round series of the NBA playoffs against the Sacramento Kings. Stephen Curry’s superlative performance was accompanied by players who know how to fill less luminous roles with Kevon Looney as the standard bearer for the commons.
Curry’s ability to score points is known to all. Teammates, opponents, spectators and analysts know that in a decisive game he will take command. He will take whatever shots are needed and he will not hide. The ball will be in his hands because there is no better place for it to reach its destination. At times, he will take advantage of the curtains to get there before his defender and have plenty of time to shoot. Other times, his ball handling is enough to create space for himself. He uses his three-point shooting threat to find corridors that lead to the hoop. Stopping Curry when he’s inspired is mission impossible. Sunday’s 50 points confirmed this statement.
What would Steph be without the valuable silent work of contributors like Looney, Draymond Green, especially focused on the biggest day, Andrew Wiggins and Gary Payton II? The indispensable contribution of the supporting cast makes the star’s performance shine even brighter.
One rebound on defense and one on offense for Looney. Another on defense and one more on offense. And so on until he reached 21, essential for the Warriors.
A screen, a timely foul, a precise assist, a cut to the hoop to receive the millimetric pass and an impassable defense, part of Green’s varied repertoire.
A mid-range shot, a three-pointer, one near the rim after penetration and another understanding where to position himself to receive the ball, some of Wiggins’ virtues.
A stopper with a timely jump shot, the necessary footwork to stop the attacker on duty and three more stops despite not being one of the tallest, in the toolbox offered by Payton.
So, despite an erratic night from Klay Thompson, who still scored a fouled three-pointer at a hot time in the game, and poor production from Jordan Poole, the Warriors offered their cooperation to the stellar Curry.
CURRY, UNCONTROLLABLE
Curry is an insatiable shooter. But he’s much more than that. Much, much more. The 7 three-pointers he made in the playoff-clinching win over the Kings represent just a fraction of his arsenal of offensive resources. Every time the defender gets the Warriors’ #30 to stop shooting from long distance, then he goes to the hoop regardless of whether there’s one, two or three opponents to get in his way. Even if he gets fouled he finds a way to take a ridiculous shot for any other player and, to top it off, put it in.
What seems unthinkable to others, Steph solves naturally. The shots flow from his hands, with the ideal position or with the less advisable one. It doesn’t matter to him, he shoots. “The confidence I have in myself, knowing who I am and how I play is something you build by working hard. That’s the most important thing: working to achieve goals. I have irrational confidence in my game.”
That irrational confidence led him to the overwhelming cataract of points he converted this Sunday. Fifty. Yes, 50. And in a Game 7 of the playoffs, something no one had ever accomplished in NBA history. Kevin Durant had the highest mark for a Game 7 with 48.
Curry is 35 years old. The temperance of a veteran and the irreverence of a young man. The serious responsibility of a leader and the smile of a child. At that age or older, only Karl Malone had ever scored that many points in a postseason game. But if we restrict the search to a seventh playoff game, then Curry far surpassed the previous mark, which was held by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with 29 in the 1984 Finals.
With the 50 at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Steph totaled 236 in the 7-game series against the Kings. Thus, only Wilt Chamberlain with 270 in the 1964 Division Finals and Rick Barry with 245 in the 1967 Finals scored more points for the Warriors in a playoff series.
LOONEY, LUXURY WORKER
He doesn’t shine. He doesn’t talk. He shoots at the rim when he’s so close to the basket that no other decision would be possible. He knows how to position himself to grab rebounds, both on offense and defense. He fights against his opponents’ biggest and strongest big men. In short, Kevon Looney works for the team.
Looney grabbed 21 rebounds in the deciding game against the Kings, 11 on defense and 10 on offense. He also scored 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field.
The Warriors pivot pulled down 106 rebounds in the playoffs against Sacramento. He averaged more than 15 per game. Only three players in Warriors history had ever reached 100 rebounds in a playoff series: Wilt Chamberlain, Nate Thurmond and Clyde Lee.
37 of Looney’s rebounds in the series were offensive. Not since 2003, when Ben Wallace grabbed 42, has a player grabbed that many on offense.
