Warriors vs Rockets |GM-1|

"and he just dirks him" LOL. Alch always with the little funny gems! Also: thanks again for the breakdowns, since this season I cannot watch all full games.

That’s why getting that first one was so big. You knew before it was over the shit storm that was coming

Athletic Alchemy

Ain't gonna lie. I'm a bit worried about this game 2 right now. Game hasn't started yet... but I'm getting that feeling that the Rockets are going to jump right into the landing zone of all of our shooters and try to get someone hurt. Then they'll spew some bs about how its karma or explain why they were right to complain about it or why GS has no right to say anything about it because they didn't get those calls their way. I don't want to think that a team would purposefully do that, but the way they are carrying on, I can't deny the possibility of that happening. I'm hoping everyone gets through unhurt.

Tony H

I keep saying! These are regular guys...of course they hold grudges. How could they not!

Athletic Alchemy

Mmmm, you think Kerr planned this approach. Could be. I don't know. If so Warriors won game 1 and that's all that matters

YANCEY WADE

and shhhhh mike LOL

Tony Stark

ohhh okok cool

Tony Stark

I wanted all that smoke from the Rockets before, but now the Rockets want to be a bunch of grimy whining hypocrites? Now I am wanting nothing more than a Warriors sweep.

William Mitchell

No 2 years before that. Call me a band wagon fan.

Ryosuke Kimura

lemme guess, you became a fan when KD joined.

if thats really the case then NBA is trolling Rockets lmao

It was announced: Scott Foster is a referee for tonight's game. I'm popping a bag of pop corn for this game-it should be interesting...Harden and CP have been trashing Foster all year, and now he's here after their meltdown over fouls in game 1. Somebody is fouling out tonight you can book it-hope it's a Rocket and not a Warrior!!!

In the third year, many media changed the tones about KD. He’s the best player on the planet. Media need to make him the guy for this series. Isn’t this what KD wanted? It’s clearly KD’s team now. I hope we roll everybody again in this year .

Ryosuke Kimura

Loved the way GSW kept putting Harden to work in the 2nd half. Every playoffs is a war of attrition. CP3 definitely looks like something's bothering him physically. I would force both CP3 and Harden to drive and finish at the rim. That's not the shot they prefer, they want the 3.

I hope you're right about the NBA wanting to make a statement. Bc this is not the spirit or integrity of the game. You can't allow players and a team to manipulate the rules like this. It's not good for the game or the fans. I did not notice that House play on Klay but you're right, it does look dirty. It looked very unnatural how his foot landed right on Klay's ankle. I thought GSW made a nice, subtle adjustment in the 2nd half for KD. KD was very inefficient in the 1st half. In the 2nd half, we got him the ball both in more space on the perimeter and we got him the ball more in movement. The spacing was much better for him in the 2nd half. I've noticed that, like all great scorers, KD operates much better in more space. When he's holding the ball at the elbow and can feel those secondary defenders waiting to double, he gets sped up and rushed his shot. HOU did this to him last year. We need to continue putting him in space like we did in the 2nd half.

thought u passed

There was a post on Reddit theorizing how D'Antoni subbed in Nene to get the possible Harden FT rebound with the assumption that Kerr would call a timeout afterwards and take Nene out. However, Kerr tricked him by not calling one causing Nene to stay in, allowing Curry to get the switch on Nene.

idk why nene was brought out during that clutch 3 by curry when harden was shooting the ft. cost them a curry 3 lol

Tony Stark

The second most important person on every one of Houston’s plays (which are usually the same play over and over) is the Ref. Take away Harden throwing his legs forward, (they took the split away after Reggie Miller exploited it). Take away his elbow fend off, take away his traveling hop step travel 3, take away his lean in and run into the defender then flop, take away his off hand grabbing the defenders arm and we would be left with an above average 2 guard. I think he would still start but the All Star game would be beyond his reach.

Russ

bro honestly tht will prove that he rlly is the GOAT gm if he does that

Tony Stark

i was hyped for the vid!!

Tony Stark

When do you think Bob Meyers will give Alch a phone call and sign him to be the Warriors video analysis guy?

Macca

I hope the NBA is making a statement. The style of play the Rockets, particularly Harden and Paul, is just not fun to watch, and just feels wrong and cheap. I am not a hater, and I think Harden is very talented, but when you start trying to draw a foul instead of making the shot, that is just wrong. Also, excuse my language, but fuck CP and his whining, cheating, and outright dirty tactics.

Best comment I saw on YouTube was "Clint has changed his last name to Green, because Draymond is his daddy."

Macca

Alch, idk how you do it, but this breakdown was Exquisite, Entertaining, Enlightening, Educational, and Eny other word that starts with an E, etc. I thought the observation you made about the screen splitting the first possession to make Houston question their switching defense is really incredible. To you it’s probably obvious but to my ignorant ass it’s far from it. Im starting to really appreciate some more of the X’s and O’s more now that I’ve been digesting your vids for quite a while now. So thanks! I was rewatching the game, and there was a point at the 2:47 mark in the first quarter where KD had the ball and Harden was on him(seems like a great opportunity to attack him) but then Dray set the screen to switch Slumpert on to him. Is there an explanation for that because If I were KD and the Warriors I would’ve attacked Harden on that play. Is it because Slumpert isn’t big or quick enough? Now, maybe that makes sense because KD drew the foul on him. Still tho I think they should make Harden work on D. Speaking of Harden, I thought even though he was 13/14 form the line, that he easily could’ve been 9/14 because a lot of his tee throws were rattling in and on some occasions were hitting the front of the rim but still managed to drop through. His only miss came in crunch time which was expected because of his history of choking. I was like, he’s gonna miss one of these and he proceeds to brick first one. Harden was 9/28 from the field(32%) and 4/16 from three(25%) which is pretty bad and even though he managed to get 35 I think that’s considered a bad game for him. He’s shooting around 35% from the field in the playoffs, and like 33% from three. He’s gonna have to go off big time if he wants to repair his legacy. At the 4:20 mark in second quarter, after a Klay three on Nene and a Steph three on Nene, they attacked him again. This is where I give you credit because before I wouldn’t have noticed this if it wasn’t for your breakdowns. You mentioned the PnR action that they put Nene through and this is where stephs gravity comes into play as well. Harden is so worried about Curry burning Nene that he doubles him, and Steph makes the easy pass to Dray who lobs to Iggy at the rim. Like it’s those details that I think make basketball fascinating. Warriors were hunting that mismatch multiple possessions in a row. On that note, I think Steph should be attacking mismatches more often because it opens that sort of stuff up. The fact that he didn’t I think is telling that he is about 70% health level right now. He was constantly deferring to KD(which makes sense when he can shoot over anyone) but if he was 90% healthy we would’ve had a much easier game. The downside with moving off ball is that he gets bumped and nudged wherever he goes and that wears him down over the course of a game and a series. Last thing. What are your thoughts on attacking Harden and putting him into foul trouble? Rockets are doing it to Steph and even though he had 5 fouls he did a good job of hedging so as not to get switched onto Harden. I think they should attack him as much as possible to wear him down.

All he got was a fine...but I'm cool with it. I want their whole squad in when that get dusted so we don't have to read another report next year on how that "turned the series" and prevented them from going to the finals-they are an absolute trip in Houston...

Awesome eye, Alch. NOBODY called the DIRTY play from House Jr.

Dan Doerge

We absolutely STOLE this game after bailing them out consistently with 20 turnovers. I love how we took the Capela factor away so we need to continue doing that. One thing we do gotta take into factor is Austin Rivers not playing and projected to play in G2. He may just take minutes away from either House Jr or Shumpert. Rivers is interesting because he can get just as hot as anyone else.

Live by the foul, Die by the foul

Lee Elliot

Good job Kerr. He showed Urgency by starting the Death lineup and attacking Nene in isolation and running more KD/Curry pick and roll.

There’s been a narrative by many James Harden supporters this year that his exploitation of the rules in drawing cheap fouls is some sort of art form or at the very least a clever approach to the modern nba. After seeing the similarities in Dray and Klay’s closeouts, (avoiding contact up top yet bodying up at the hip line while turning their back towards the shooter) it appears that Kerr and his defenders had a similar approach to this game. The big question going into game one was how would the warriors defend the raining mvp and it seems the assumption is that the Warriors decided to guard him straight up. But what seems to actually have occurred is they wanted to test the limits of the close out defense at the 3 point line with this older veteran referee squad. It could have easier failed and the approach would’ve been abandoned at the first half, and most likely was not planned to be used in game 2 regardless of the two possible outcomes. However, not only was it successful to open the series, the emotional energy spent by the entire Houston franchise will have a tremendous effect on their physical well being and mental preparation for game two. It will actually be a bit irrelevant since the approach must be changed after the replay controversies, but I am under the impression this was a planned attack, and I am fully impressed with Kerr and the coaching staff who I usually think under prepare for such occasions.

Stevie Ray

I'm just waiting for Steph and Klay to have the statement game.

Tbh I think our inability to score on Nene was fools gold for the Rockets and D'Antoni as he mentioned it in his post game press conference. He thought Nene did a great job on switches earlier in the game thats why he was on the floor late in the game.

Selcuk Taskin

Yeah I saw that too. Anyone read Iguodala's pov on this: <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/in-game-1-of-rockets-warriors-no-one-was-happy-with-the-officiating-030945117.html." rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://sports.yahoo.com/in-game-1-of-rockets-warriors-no-one-was-happy-with-the-officiating-030945117.html.</a> I really don't blame Steph for most of his personal fouls as there is a double standard on what defenses could do to him. If he got the right calls, he could probably average 35-40 pts a game. 2016 championship would have been ours.

Paradox

Only thing I'm gonna say is Steph gets bodied and has dudes jumping at him 10 times a game almost while shooting 3s, he gets FTs off then maybe every 4th game. Klay had a couple and I think it's cuz he can't elevate, but he did. But fuck it, this is playoff basketball. When you need another man to perform an action so that you can be considered great, are you really that great? Morey keeping track of which officials call what fouls. It's part of their analytics. 3s, dunks, and free throws. So they go into the whole game thinking if we can't get the first 2 easily, we have to get the 3rd. All their whining and complaining, and the report about all the missed calls last year...it's such a bitch move. Always passing all the blame. Never taking any. It can't possibly be they missed 27 3 pointers. They literally took an objective game (put ball in hoop=points) and turned it into a completely subjective way to score points. They're literally trying to "tell Mommy and Daddy" to fix their problems. Come save us mom, Billy said a bad word and now I'm upset. There's so many parallels between them complaining and the mentality of the whole generation of people under 30. That whole organization is just 1 big ass bitch.

Great stuff as always, Alch. What do you think about ESPN posting two stories, one about the Rockets audit(insinuating the Rockets have compiled legitimate evidence that the refs were pro-Warriors last WCF, and ipso facto every series): <a href="http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/26634745/rockets-audited-18-game-7-say-finals-bid-taken," rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/26634745/rockets-audited-18-game-7-say-finals-bid-taken,</a> and the second article stating the NBA has expressed that Curry should have fouled out (furthering the narrative that Curry is just defensively liable):<a href="http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/26634678/nba-curry-fouled-game-1?" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/26634678/nba-curry-fouled-game-1?</a> Why is refereeing all of a sudden such a big deal for all teams when its been shit for the dubs since the season in which they won their first chip? Pretty sure its to control a series just like this: where a team is close enough to "almost " good enough to make noise against the Dubs, but will need NBA "help", and the NBA can just lie back on the "fact" that refereeing has been shit "all year" for "all teams", not just the Dubs. --&gt; 2016

What do you think about Chris Paul getting ejected for making contact with the ref? Livingston got suspended for contact with the ref before.

Nathan Glanzer

I like to see more side contest in this game 2 just in case.

Athletic Alchemy

good take, even with splash bros chipped up. I agree we tough with those two dialed in.

Athletic Alchemy

I try!

Athletic Alchemy

Im with you, he just has no burst.

Athletic Alchemy

They need to switch it up a bit game two. more side closeouts.

Athletic Alchemy

they tried a few years ago..but it fizzled out quick.

Athletic Alchemy

Thanks...had too!

Athletic Alchemy

I know that is kinda of a far fetched theory.

Athletic Alchemy

Thats for sure neither team is as good...

Athletic Alchemy

I definitely see a scenario where he and CP get snippy with each other. Hell CP is notorious for that. I think that is where they miss Ariza as well. He was the buffer at times between them.

Athletic Alchemy

Facts! Also, thoroughly enjoyed the Harden compilation at the end!

I watched every one again. I put an ex where Harden left. At no point is Klay anywhere near that x when he lands. ONE TIME he fouled him for sure because he made contact in the air. That was it. Just like Draymond said. If he lands 3 feet in front of where he jumped from after jumping straight up. And falls back EVERY TIME. Why? BECAUSE HE'S OFF BALANCE FROM KICKING HIS FEET OUT. No sympathy for that clown. Learn to play basketball.

Nathan Glanzer

That was still the craziest no call I've ever seen

Nathan Glanzer

tough watch Harden and cp biggest floppers ive ever seen

Anybody notice how all the "questionable" closeout calls always involve Harden and Paul but never Eric Gordon who is arguably their best ranged and most effective 3 point shooter? The Warriors never seem to undercut Gordon hmmmm....I wonder...what could be the difference?

Steven Stanley

Hey alch I have an interesting take on the final few possessions of the game. When Klay fouled harden going left on that late drive and harden went to the floor I think it was Gordon and Paul went to pick him up and Harden shot them a nasty look as if they were pulling on his shoulder and later of course Paul later got ejected. I thought maybe Hardens interaction injected some bad juju into the togetherness of the Rockets in the final minute of the game and ultimately led to Chris Paul’s blowup in addition to frustration to the refs and his ejection. I have to note that the warriors seemed very juiced and had a sense of togetherness that the Rockets lacked. Do you see any potential validity to that observation? I realize that the Rockets were clearly frustrated as a team toward the officiating and of course were playing away, but I can’t help but have noticed that and thought that it led to the Paul ejection.

They've been holding on to it for a year for this "grand reveal" LOL...its pretty embarrassing I cant believe they out themselves out there like that 🤣🤣🤣

Been waiting for your take. Couple things I took away: 1) did you see Draymond's turnaround fade? I don't think I've ever seen him even take that shot before to say nothing of hitting it. 2) Bogut's priceless golf clap after Paul was ejected. Should be an exciting series; we can expect the refs to make a few more whistles in Harden's favor but as long as GSW limits turnovers and keeps the D exactly the way it was in G1, I think we'll pull through.

Neal X

This foul trouble EVERY GAME since the post season is a bit suspect to me...KD has been the media narrative all year...and playoff ratings are down...got ke wondering if the league is intentionally targeting Curry so he doesn't interfere with KDs thunder 🤔 with Lebron out of the postseason, they can talk about KD being the "greatest" and "leading his own team"...just a thought...

There was a time in the NBA when a number of players had eye injuries from the hand in the face defense, it's why Kareem wore goggle and Horace Grant and a number of others, it wasn't the rule that solve the problem, the players themselves solved that problem in their own interest. The landing area solution does not protect the players if the players are going to use the landing area to try and create advantage, it's a solution worse than the original problem.

Steven Stanley

Felt bad for Houston because it reminded me of the game vs Minnesota a while back but then Harden had to go cry and now any kind of sympathy for them is gone.

Great great recap on all levels. Loved the security dude bigger than CP3 sweeping the trash out of Oracle

Jim

This game was all about the heart of a champion, straight up. I thought the same as you, i thought we had a good chance to lose this one but the effort and will defensively made up for all the sloppy execution errors we had. Also Houstons offense looks nothing like the juggernaut they were last year, neither team is at the same level as last year to be fair but again when the going gets tough we just refuse to die.

KuraiT

props to steph ...little hidden gem is watching kerr put his hands up and lean back on the chair expecting steph to get his sixth foul on gordon

I can't express how good your analysis is here, I'll just say excellent, one of your best ever. I can't say I have any confidence that the NBA realizes this series is like a showcase for the NBA's existential crisis about analytics and rules. Hand check, Euro step, rip through, legalised travelling, landing area. The game is better now? The best analytic plays in basketball are free throws, uncontested 3's &amp; the alley oop. Do we want to make them the only plays? Do we really want a free throw parade? Do we want all the players to copy the boy who cried wolf? Do we really want the refs to serve as a protection squad for an aging Chris Paul (the dirtiest player since the hand check left the game) ?

Steven Stanley

Man, that was intense! Actually was able to watch the game online (long live r/nbastreams!) because of the early start. Not sure what was more annoying, the Warriors turning the ball over every other minute, or the WAY TOO MANY commercial breaks. But that's just me, used to soccer games with just one break at half-time... Alch, I can't really imagine the NBA actually wanting to shut down Houston this way, but man, their game is SO ugly. Can't imagine being a fan of theirs, with all this flopping and cheap-ass foul selling...

Michel ten Voorde

hopefully Klay goes and watches film so he can figure out a different way to close out on Harden. They are not going to continue to let him get away with those fouls all series long.

Kahlil Baker

So I actually got to catch this game live (I live overseas) and ended up watching to about half time until I passed out (was after a full day's work and an intense weekend). To me, Dray and Dre are the keys to our success in this series. Draymond looked better than he's been in a very long time. He looks bouncy, fast, agile and most importantly he REALLY aggressive on the offensive end, his points in the first quarter really gave us energy. Andre has also been looking springy and quick, he really surprised me with how much he was driving to the basket and looking for layups/contact. I think if these guys play at a high level than we take this series in 5-6 games, they're our energy &amp; locker room leaders and their level of play will define the outcome of this series.

Ezra Abbey

Probz to you for keeping it real and objective. There were some fouls that were missed (on both sides tho). And it's really just hilarious for James Harden to be the one complaining about the refs. Ironic

Curry definitely seems injured, can't move as fast or move as much off the ball. Ball handling less crisp than usual starting from last game. That ankle worries me man. Man how many free dunks has Iguodala gotten this playoffs? It seems like we are getting good percentage shots but in reality, our lack of 3s nearly lost us the game. Draymond essentially won us the game with his rebounds and gave us opportunities to make up for it. But KD and Klay needs to shoot more 3s. KD's bedt midrange numbers are still not comparable to the points his 3s generate. Rockets played the Moreyball well, that's why they were competitive.

Paradox

Some of this morning I've been fending off a Harden/Houston troll who's so convinced the Rockets got jobbed. I totally agree that while there were fouls missed on both sides-this 'landing zone' deal doesn't include some sort of 3-4 foot jump forward into the legs of the defender. I do hope that the league puts its foot down-Houston's style is kind of repulsive to me as a fan of flow and sharing the ball. And all the research that Houston has done on getting fouled by the Warriors-and NOW they share this with the world!! Wow-how lame.

Paul Hanson

Harden and CP3 are a bunch of fuckin losers lmfao. The slow-no replays of their flops are honestly tragic

I hope this backfires on the rockets. They risked it going after the refs in their post game interviews and the nba backed the refs calls with the 2 minute report. W’s just need to win game 2 and there’ll be no doubt this series goes to 5. Would really love for a warriors sweep HOU just to shut all the 🚀 fans up but a gentleman’s sweep is the next best thing.

Adam Johnson

Haha they never miss the toe on the line...except that kd 3 steps out of bound.

Such a sloppy game for the warriors and i think to win this series and another title, the chef gotta get back in that kitchen and be the threat that he is. I hope the reffing doesnt just swing in favor of the rockets but klay gotta be better on defense. Great breakdown, been waiting on this all day

Matt Hanna

In European football/Soccer you can get a penalty if you flop. Maybe NBA should look in to that. If someone flops, its a foul on them. That might cut out that crap quickly!!!

Francisco Hazel

I love sdot, but he gotta go. I really really wanna see jb although it won't happen, he did a pretty great job last year in the Houston series.

Edward Zeng

Great Intro Alch. Gotta luv the "troll-toss" photo!!!

Dan Doerge

Ay excited to watch this at work 😂

Love the thumbnail Klay laughing at these hacks getting EXPOSED. Can't win in the playoffs if you rely on the refs.

Nathan Glanzer

Two flus? Haha.

Nathan Glanzer

there is plenty of time left for that! This was much more about what was and what wasn't.

Athletic Alchemy

I heard Clint had flu...actually two flu's apparently? Heard it on one of those sport shows.

KendrickTheCreative

22 minutes!!!

Luke Zhang

Can't wait to hear you go off on CP3 lol

Luke Zhang