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5 adjustments the Warriors should make for Game 4

By Carlos Murillo

May 22, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Golden State Warriors bench reacts during the second quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder in game three of the Western conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
May 22, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Golden State Warriors bench reacts during the second quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder in game three of the Western conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /
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May 22, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (35) defends Golden State Warriors center Festus Ezeli (31) during the third quarter in game three of the Western conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /

A switch at center could be big for the Warriors.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have a lot of size.

They can play their lineup with Durant, Steven Adams, and Enes Kanter and roll out an intimidating front court with mobile 7-footers. It’s scary.

They key here is the mobility. Durant is a guard in a center’s body. When he comes around high screens, he basically is going one-on-one with the Warriors’ center. Andrew Bogut is not nearly quick enough to have a chance at slowing Durant down. While Ezeli won’t shut him down, he could move around a little better, closing out on Durant while recovering on whoever cuts from the weak side.

Similarly, the OKC bigs like to move and be physical. Ezeli can match that, using his athleticism to bother Adams and Kanter on both ends. Kanter, in particular, is a fantastic offensive player, but a lackluster defensive one. That needs to be exploited. Posting him up doesn’t work. He doesn’t move his feet well on the defensive end so using Ezeli in a pick-and-roll where he can run to the rim and catch lobs would be the best counter.

Of course, Ezeli can’t pass like Bogut and doesn’t have reliable hands, but Bogut has struggled against Oklahoma City.

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