Too much KD, not enough Splash Brothers
Watching the Warriors shy away from their usual ball movement in Game 2 was certainly a cause for concern…and confusion.
Prior to Game 2, the Warriors were averaging 28.4 assists per game, which was the highest mark among all playoff teams. In Game 2, the Warriors looked much more like the opposing Rockets by resorting to a number of isolation plays, resulting in just 21 assists for the night.
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Looking at how the touches were distributed is also quite concerning. According to NBA Advanced Stats, Kevin Durant had 63 touches, which was the third-most on the Warriors behind Draymond Green‘s 90 and Stephen Curry’s 68.
The difference however, was KD made only 27 passes out of his 63 touches (42.8 percent), while Draymond made 79 passes (87.7 percent) and Curry made 44 (64.7).
While Durant has scored at least 37 points the past two games, he hasn’t exactly shown much versatility, averaging just 3.0 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 0.0 steals and 0.5 blocks. He may be an unstoppable scorer, but his lack of production in other areas has made the Warriors incredibly predictable and one-dimensional.
And I’d hate to say it, but that kind of basketball just hasn’t embodied the #StrengthInNumbers mantra the team has preached all season. In fact, Houston looked much more like the Warriors in Game 2, ending the game with their top-5 scorers in double-digits.
Probably the biggest surprise: Klay Thompson touched the ball just 32 times in Game 2 after recording 50 touches in Game 1. That’s no way to get your third-best scorer on the team involved, and the team is most definitely going to need him as the postseason wanes on.