Golden State Warriors: 3 things that went wrong in Game 2 vs. Rockets
Lack of energy
One of the things my dad used to suggest to me when I trained in MMA was to always be the first guy to land a hit. His reasoning: “everyone has a plan…until they get smacked in the face.” Funny enough, that’s exactly what normally leads to Warriors losses: the Dubs get smacked early, then fail to recover.
After their thorough 119-106 victory in Game 1, the Warriors came into Game 2 thinking themselves more than capable of disposing of the Rockets at half their usual energy. That overconfidence came back to bite them in the ass as Houston charged full speed ahead right out of the gates.
Their total lack of energy has been a problem since 2016. They start the game careless and slow, expecting to stay in control for the rest of the game; a second later, they find themselves in too deep a hole to dig out of.
The we-know-we-will-win-this-series Warriors are here
— Marcus Thompson II (@ThompsonScribe) May 17, 2018
Actually think this proves the point: Nothing changed other than GSW effort/focus levels https://t.co/dTu1Ef3BSy
— #1 Point God Stan (@samesfandiari) May 17, 2018
Curry: "We were trying to be too cute with our switches and that kind of stuff, instead of just manning up and playing one-on-one defense."
— Connor Letourneau (@Con_Chron) May 17, 2018
Mike D'Antoni: "They walked it up tonight, did a lot of isos."
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) May 17, 2018
Kevin Durant pinned the 7 first-quarter turnovers on him since he had five for the whole game. Durant observed that set the tone for everyone else
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) May 17, 2018
I’m not sure exactly what the Dubs were expecting, but the Rockets for sure caught them off guard. It’s almost as if they forgot Houston is actually a good team.
The thing that makes the Rockets so dangerous is they understand their backs are up against the wall, and the only way to get things back to equal ground is to channel their desperation into uncontainable ferocity.
Next: Curry wins defensive battle vs. Harden in Game 1
If the Warriors fail to match that level of intensity and effort in the next two games at Oracle Arena, this series could end up being much longer than previously expected.