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If there’s one lesson to be learned from the Golden State Warriors’ 110-107 win over the Boston Celtics, it’s that looking at box scoring – especially defensive efficiency – isn’t always indicative. , nor does it provide a full contextual picture of how a team played defense.
Excluding end-of-quarter uprisings, the Warriors earned a defensive rating of 110.3 against the Celtics – well above their league-leading standard of 100.5 points allowed per 100 possessions before the game. . Some of this can be attributed to the Celtics’ shooting, while others are due to rare defensive failures – the emphasis is on ‘rare’, as the Warriors have been near perfect this season in terms of connectivity and communication.
The Warriors, for the most part, were well connected and focused on defending against the Celtics, who are one of the more confusing teams on offense (107.9 points per 100 possessions, 20th in the league before the game) despite the the likes of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in their team. The lack of secondary actions and advancements, especially when it comes to off-ball / weak side moves, is glaring.
This is the game of the Warriors, who feast on stagnation and attract enemy attacks in poor quality shots.
The first defensive possession that stood out came from rookie Moses Moody, replacing Jordan Poole in the starting unit. Moody isn’t able to replicate Poole’s role as a secondary strike creator and playmaker, but what he lacks in terms of offensive firepower he makes up for with his defensive balance and maturity.
Watch his defense on Brown on possession below:
The scheme of this particular possession against Brown requires Moody to “freeze” the screen, that is, to jump in front of the screen to prevent Brown from using it, forcing him to stay on the sidelines and turn it off. point to Kevon Looney, which forces a reset.
Moody trusts the defense behind him and allows Brown to move towards the edge, while following close. Moody’s confidence is rewarded – Looney enters a vertical contest, which allows Moody to block Brown from behind.
The Warriors’ offensive interchangeability has been an oft-lauded trait – the large number of high IQ playmakers and operators on the squad allows Steve Kerr to mix and match his staff, with little to no downfall. when replacing it. particular players for different (except Stephen Curry, of course).
But I would say the Warriors’ defensive interchangeability has been their highlight this season. Missing the services of a defensive mainstay such as Andre Iguodala over the past two years has made the Warriors very reliable on Draymond Green to act as an anchor and defensive general; without him on the ground, they must have been precarious with their defensive staff.
With the return of Iguodala, the Warriors’ flexibility in terms of substituting particular defensive personnel for others is greatly extended. At 36, Iguodala is no longer the spring chicken he once was, but he retains the intelligence and know-how of team defense.
With Green out of the ground, Iguodala skillfully plays the role Green has become quite famous for:
Follow Iguodala on the above possession. It plays the role of “free security” in defense, like the way Green walks the ground, ready to help in any disadvantageous situation that may arise: shutdown, spinning, switching, etc.
Rotating Warriors, while rarely beaten, need someone to help them out whenever someone is beaten in a closing game or beaten by cuts. Iguodala is filling holes whenever holes appear – a role he has proven himself capable of playing in the past, and continues to play well, even though he has become a statesman. the oldest on the team.
Even with Iguodala playing the role of a green lookalike, nothing beats the original. Green’s intelligence on defense is an astonishing sight. Its sensitivity to the ground is unmatched; he is aware of everything that is going on around him and hardly ever misses a crumb.
Green lures offenders into believing they have an opening, only for him to close that opening in an instant:
With Green “dividing the difference” from the weak side in possession above – i.e. acting as the lone zoner covering two defenders on the weak side – he looks like he is helping drive Marcus Smart so to attract the pass to the wing. Once this pass is made, Green turns on the jets, closes hard, and blocks Josh Richardson’s shot, leading to a dunk at the other end.
Later in the game, the Warriors need another clutch defensive possession with the game in play. As such, the Warriors insert Green, Iguodala, Looney, Andrew Wiggins and Gary Payton II, in the hope to force a crucial stop that will put the Warriors in control.
Possession above is a master class when it comes to switching and timely help. Take a look at the first change of ball between Wiggins and Payton, followed by a late change from Wiggins and sink to Robert Williams III, which cuts off a potential pass. Green then passes Brown to Iguodala on the wing to help with Tatum’s training, which forces the pass to Brown.
Iguodala then closes in on Brown, who attacks the hold, directly into Payton’s helping arms. This, in turn, allows Iguodala to sneak in from behind and pull the ball out of Brown, forcing the turnover and completing the beautiful defensive dance.
Iguodala has proven to be a clutch in the past, and he didn’t disappoint against the Celtics. It continues to deliver value despite declining gross production – it shoots an abysmal 16.1% out of three and 36.5% total from the field.
But with the tokens in play, or rather – to use a more appropriately figurative situation – with the fate of the universe at stake, we all know who we want to step up.
