Warriors faced with inordinate amount of off-days

The Golden State Warriors have had an abnormal amount of time-off during these playoffs. How they manage their longest layover yet will have a major impact on how the Finals plays out.

On Monday night the Golden State Warriors won 129-115 to complete a four-game sweep of the San Antonio Spurs. In doing so they became the first team to enter the extended period of purgatory before the start of the NBA Finals.

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For the NBA, the amount of consecutive off days both during and between series is becoming a problem. It brings to light issues with the way the league schedules its playoffs games.

In the NBA playoffs fans expect clothes games, buzzer beaters, and generally exciting basketball.

These playoffs are being considered by many to be the most boring in recent memory. Both the Cavs and the Warriors are dismantling their conferences en route to what will likely be a third consecutive Finals rematch. Throw in a large swath of days in which nothing is happening on the courts and the issue is further compounded.

Since the playoffs began on April 16th, the Warriors have played just 12 games in 37 days or one every 3.2 days.

They have record just one loss (the game against Utah when Kerr sat the starters in the 4th quarter) in the past 70 days. During this period the team has played just 28 games and had 42 off days.

Much of their playoff days off are a result of their dominance. Because they have swept every series they have played in, the amount of time they have had to wait has been determined by the length of their opponent’s previous series.

After handling Portland, in the Western Conference Quarterfinals, the Warriors were forced to wait over a week before their next game as the Jazz took seven games to beat the Clippers. After the sweep of Utah, they had to wait five days for the Spurs to handle business against Houston in six.

Now the Warriors face their longest layover yet, a nine-day stretch without competitive basketball until the first day of June.

In many ways this stretch is a welcome respite for the Warriors. It allows time for banged up players like Andre Iguodala and Zaza Pachulia a chance to recover from nagging ailments or injuries. It allows a significant time for players, particularly veterans, to rest and recuperate.

And it may be a longshot, but the time off also gives Steve Kerr a chance to become more involved with the team or possibly return.

However, two questions arise.

1. Is there some imperative that says the the Finals must start in June?

The NBA released the Finals schedule on the 18th of May, dictating that, regardless of the outcome of either Conference Finals, June 1st would be the start date. At that time neither the Cavs nor the Warriors had lost a postseason game. If both teams had gone on to sweep their respective series, the NBA would have been in for a period of over a week without basketball.

The league was only spared such a nightmare thanks to a career performance by Boston’s Marcus Smart and a friendly rim. Even so, the Celtics’ surprise Game 3 win in Cleveland only prolonged the series by adding an extra game. So instead of the down-period beginning on the 23rd of May, it began two days later. In cases such as this, wouldn’t it be better to simply base the start of the Finals on the end-date of both of the previous series?

In relation to the Finals schedule itself, the NBA further compounded the problem by adding a two-day gap in between all but one of the seven potential games. In a year in which many people claim to be “bored” by the playoffs, having more scheduled days-off than game-days only serves to strengthen the apathy of the average fan.

2. For the Warriors, how much time is too much time?

Getting rested and prepared for a series is great, but it can throw teams out of rhythm, something to which even the mighty Warriors are not immune.

The Warriors have been shaky by their standards coming off inter-series breaks. This postseason, the Warriors but have posted their average lowest margin of victory not in Game 3s as in past years, but in Game 1s at only +8.7.

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The first game of the San Antonio series demonstrated the difficulty of getting back. The Spurs had just played a hard-fought series against Houston and still had their rhythm after two days. The Warriors came out out of sync and got smacked in the first half. But they managed to recover and complete a remarkable comeback.

Entering these Finals however, the Warriors are motivated in a way that the have not been in past years or even past series. They know they cannot afford to come out against Cleveland like they did against the Spurs. They are out for revenge, out to show the world just how good they are and they have the Cavs and last year’s events set firmly in the forefront of their minds.

The Warriors have their eyes firmly set on LeBron James and the Cavaliers. They know that they cannot afford to come out against Cleveland like they did in Game 1 against the San Antonio. They are out for revenge, out to show the world just how good they are and to take back the title they fumbled away in 2016.