Warriors vs Thunder Game 1

Kid is strong, id like to see him use it on the offensive end too.

Athletic Alchemy

Adam's 100% traveled on that play against Damien and he still wasn't able to get position!

Nathan Glanzer

Im pick my spots, I know people like the mini roasts.

Athletic Alchemy

I thought all in all a pretty solid opening game. Jones really surprised me too. I loved ‘fat boy Felton’ but ‘2018 Deliverence beard’ was priceless. 👍

Damon

Thank you! I didn’t want seem like I am trying to create some narrative. It just felt that way in this game!

Athletic Alchemy

I stole your line in today’s vid 😉.... but your right they purposely left it on him.

Athletic Alchemy

I couldn't ever imagine he'd be at the ring ceremony, just because he's holding out and apparently wanting to move to another team. You don't show up to get a ring and then walk away in that situation, unless you're clearly negotiating in good faith and wanting to come back. And can you imagine the boos he'd get right now, due to his apparent disloyalty? Why would someone subject themselves to that? And if he's really not in communication with any of the other players, it would be incredibly awkward. My biggest problem with this situation is that it's the result of the rules and agreements between the league and the players union. I don't think restricted free agents should be allowed to do this, because the whole concept of restricted free agency is for teams to be able to retain players but also to make sure the player is getting market value. In this case the Ws don't have him and he's not getting paid either, let alone at market value. Restricted free agency should last from 7/1 to 10/1 and then the player should either sign a contract that's in front of him or be ineligible to do so until 7/1 of the following year, which means he's taking the year off. That forces a decision, and the team doesn't get into a position where they have to sign someone else to replace a guy they plan on matching anyway, once he gets around to signing with someone, and then incorporate him after the season starts. And the matching ability is probably a big part of the reason that other teams aren't that interested, so the rules create this Mexican standoff that benefits no one. So put a clock on it, for chrissakes.

The way to get Bell more minutes is obvious - power forward. If Green is hurting or out of shape the minutes are there, and Kerr should really rest Green more anyway, keep him fresh for the playoffs. Unless Jerebko can really establish himself at the backup four that's the way to go, although then you're playing two kids in tandem, neither of whom can really make points on their own - until Cousins comes back, that is. But the reality is that there are going to be matchups that have Looney and Bell playing all the minutes and Jones sitting - can you see Jones going up against Al Horford and guys like that? And I think one reason Jones is starting may be that he's the most like Boogie, and eventually Boogie is the guy who will be starting with those guys.

I think Steph realized that he has to share the burden to have a long and successful career. Teams figured out that they need to be very physical with Steph and force him to defend the ball on every posession to weaken his offense by 2016. KD proved to be the perfect partner in crime. When it is all said and done he will have one more ring than KD anyway and he will be the best shooter and in the top2 (Magic was kinda sick...) for point guards all time.

I feel like Steph is at his best when he is selfish. His unanimous mvp season was when he shot off the dribble and blow teams out by the 3rd quarter. Now he almost never gets this chance and he sacrifices a lot with his off ball movement. Unlike Steph, KD wasn't very efficient last night and forced a lot of tough shots. He had half the team's free throws. Klay was weird because he clunked open shots; just wasn't his night.

Paradox

McCaw apparently practicing st a high school gym instead of being at the ring ceremony. To me this indicates he can't take the pressure of playing for the greatest team of all time. Maybe he feels like he doesn't deserve the ring because he didn't contribute much which is true, but it speaks volumes about his confidence. He also doesn't return any text messages from his teammates. That could be a sign of disrespect but I think he is just too afraid of dealing with the issue.

Paradox

The fake dribble handoff from Dray straight into the drive is actually a really slick move. It almost looks accidental and goofy but it works. Really sells the handoff holding the ball like then then switching to the dribble hand and footwork to get passed. Hope to see that more.

Nathan Glanzer

Gonna be interesting to see if Jones can keep progressing and solidify himself as the starter. Looney is still the much better player overall but Jones is that lob threat and big athletic body that complements the stars well. Almost all his points came off of PnR, mainly with Curry. I think Jones needs to play alongside the stars at this point bc he can't score on his own. But what I think excites GSW is the possibility that we may have finally found our big man who we can run PnR with who can actually FINISH the play and who is a lob threat as well. We have never had that. We just gotta keep running PnR with Jones so he gets all the nuances of it down. He's definitely much smoother out there than he was a year ago. If Jones keep playing like this tho, Bell will be basically out of the rotation. Bc when Cousins is back, Bell is basically the 4th string center. I don't think that will sit well with him , especially since this is a contract year for him. Kerr's gotta find a way to get Bell more minutes. Bell has too much talent to not play. Gobert and Jokic are gonna be big tests for Jones and we'll see how he handles them.

There was definitely a lack of respect for the opponent. Jazz gonna bust they ass if they come out arrogant.

Athletic Alchemy

This game.......was bad. Just bad from pretty much everyone EXCEPT.........thats right. You guessed it. Damian Jones! Surprise surprise. He actually impressed me against one of the biggest Warrior-killers there are in Steven Adams. Still made some rookie mistakes and still was too timid at times. But overall he played the best in my opinion! This was probably due to him knowing this is his make-or-break year. All the other vets looked pretty awful. Even Steph, with a great stat-line, just looked completely uninterested in playing. And the crowd reflected that. The game was totally dead. Aside from Draymond looking terrible, Klay being off, KD going through the motions, and Iggy getting injured (surprise surprise.....again.), the worst part about this game and this upcoming season? The bench is just goddamn awful. Not a single player not named Shaun Livingston can produce any offense at all. Cook isnt cutting it. McKinnie.....I dont even know how he made it over House Jr. Or did he? I didnt see House last night. And then Jarebko not shooting, and Looney being scared to do more offensively. Looney plays really good D!!! I'll never forget what he did vs. the Rockets. But damn dude, step your game up and TRY to score. Overall, this game just was a bore to watch when Jones wasnt on the floor, and the bench production has me very worried.

Jansen E

Thanks Maj! Got a find a rhythm between them. I’m start off putting them on none Warrior days. At least until I get efficient enough to do both in one day. Still open invite for a quick take on the show when you feel some type a way about something this season.

Athletic Alchemy

Can wait for the season opener of NBA Alchemy, dude! I love the new YT channel format. And, of course, these dubs breakdowns on Patreon are everything. Fuckin 2018 Deliverance beard had me rolling.

Major Powers

No....I agree! Especially Steph! Last night in that second half there were just too many possessions where no one else touched the ball.

Athletic Alchemy

In my opinion, Steph and Klay should be more aggressive than they have been over the last two years. Maybe not as much as last night but definitly ​more than last year.

Aidan Mackenzie

Shout out to TNT for keeping the camera on Russ' salty face before and after the ring ceremony.

Aidan Mackenzie

Damien really showed up and I am looking forward to this starting line up, but the later end of the bench was still disappointing and i could see that it might take some time to turn it around.

Yeah the missing imprint of both IG and Dray could be a big part of it. And then I also have to realize if Klay is going to start handling more we are going to have to watch him take his lumps.

Athletic Alchemy

+1 on Damien exceeding expectations +1 on Looney get 5+ Million next year And it wasn't just you, I think we need to see the stat of how many assists were created in between the big 3 of the few that occurred they were not Warrior like extra passes. KD looked like he was trying to get his, Curry the same, and Klay trying to prove he can handle and score of the dribble. They've been hearing all the narratives for months and now it was the first moment they could directly affect it themselves. Hopefully, Hopefully things cool off and remember the 3 peat is the goal. But I think low key, Curry and KD both hunting for MVP. unlikely either of them are even considered by the voters

Stevie Ray

Crazy how good he has gotten. If he ever gets the confidence to pull the jumper he is going to be a 10 mil a year player.

Athletic Alchemy

I wasn't surprised by Steph and Klay at all last night, my impression has been that they're both wanting to step it up another level this year, ready to reestablish the Splash. KD always seems like an iso hero-ball type guy to me; he's at his best when you don't really notice him, at least as a Warrior. But I'll take the positive slant and say it's just that, it's not egos or contracts, it's just the competitiveness of first-tier professional athletes. Kerr said they were dribbling and not passing way too much, which is another way to describe the iso behavior, but how much of that was not yet being in sync and the consequence of a sub-par Dray and the kids in the middle? And Iggy was all but missing as well, DWest in street clothes, so no adult in the room - this isn't a group of talented kids playing with veterans anymore, they are the veterans now. Not a surprise to me. I agree on Loon, and he was especially critical in one run late in the game when he got a couple dunks and a block in less than a minute, I think. He's a guy who is building outward from just being completely solid at an unusually low level of experience. And Utah and Denver will be interesting, these guys playing at elevation with their current conditioning against two solid teams - they have to play smarter and more efficiently than they did last night or they'll be coming home 1-2.

But...but...LeBron would cry.

Steven Stanley

Excellent work AA

Steven Stanley

Looney's line absolutely fantastic 10 & 10 (2 blocks) in 18 minutes....wow at some point this season Draymond might need to sit down to get right and Looney is the guy to absorb minutes. I love a player who doesn't make a lot of mistakes even if they'll never be a star.

Steven Stanley

Absolutely.. he should expand off the dribble. It would just be super ironic if it ended up being Klay who started to look for his outside of the system.!

Athletic Alchemy

Yeah maybe now that he is working off the dribble, it appears like he is forcing more. But aye it’s 1 gm

Athletic Alchemy

Haha I went back to look if DJ was tripping him. He is a good athlete for his size, but very heavy on his feet.

Athletic Alchemy

Not sure James is now running his own counseling office. I’m thinking about turning NBA Alchemy into a weekly pod combining the weeks episodes.

Athletic Alchemy

Right he avoids the ankles and knees, but to me he hits hard. KD slides to the floor.

Athletic Alchemy

Your right good call on cool. Got left on the cutting room floor to keep under 15 min

Athletic Alchemy

To me, it seemed like the abnormally high amount of hero ball was due to a lack of offensive rhythm. I wonder how much Dray’s conditioning and the second half absence of Andre impacted that. I agree with your point about the length and atheticism of OKC being distruptive to the Dubs’ motion offense. Also hoping Klay is less concerned with a contract year and more just trying to expand his game. Was forcing things a bit much in this game but I think Klay with a little more play off the dribble would be a good addition to the offense, perhaps more exclusively in late clock situations. Great video though! Great start to the season for you and the Dubs!

Kyle Walker

I love the new klay. The only thing really missing from his game was creating his own shot off the dribble. Now he got the stepback too...bring out the brink truck, its only a matter of time before he get his rhythm down.

How many times did Adams hit the floor? What's up with that?

e40

When is Dat NBA Life coming back.

Toulivinho

I think Curry falls better than almost anyone else in the league. He falls on his back and thus doesn't risk injuring his arms or his ankles. At least that is what he tries to do. When KD fell he reached out and tried to break is fall with his arm which is what made his fall so scary.

Shout for Quinn Cook who’s hassled on defense , full court press , fighting over screens and nailed the open 3! Good night for QC and DJ and KL!

Alon Altman

Our reporters are idiots what did they expect him to say, "yeah I got a hard on being called last. Klay trying to continue his good shooting from the the preseason he will settle into his game as time goes on.They were all looking for theirs OKC defense good but let's be real they were all coming down chucking, especially since russ out they figure more margin for error.

excited for the new alchemy season, let's gooooo

Corbin Santos

Yeeeee! The new Alchemy season begins! Been waiting all day for this breakdown!!!

Kyle Walker