Alright, let's face it; our Golden State Warriors are not ready to win a seven game finals championship series just yet. Sure they can play shutdown defense and shoot lights out from the perimeter, but not consistently over a seven game series. There is where the dagger of defeat strikes hardest; consistency.
The Warriors simply have a way of playing down to lesser teams and stepping up to the challenge of competing against good teams.
Night in and night out there's no predicting how good or bad the Warriors will play, the only hint being the record of the team they're facing. But lately they're finding ways to finish games and win regardless of turnovers, foul trouble, defensive breakdowns or any other negative actions on the court. The Warriors are grinding out victories in ways that elite teams are known to do.
If they could stay healthy over longer stretches, then we might see more consistency in their game and less struggle to finish. They've been a team that seems to always have main pieces missing. The good thing is the backups are stepping up their games and we're seeing what newly acquired players Jordan Crawford and Steve Blake can do.
The one backup that's given a huge lift to the Warriors of late has been the return of Jermaine O'neal. The veteran center has turned up his game big time in the last three outings, coming away with a double-double (reb/pts) in the last two. If O'neal can stay healthy down the stretch, a challenge at 35 years old, the Warriors might go deeper than expected in the playoffs.
As of now the Warriors are enjoying a four game winning streak and hold a sixth seed playoff berth. After these remaining five road games we fans look forward to the teams' return home with the winning flames still flickering sky high. The hope of Warriors fans has always been consistent, win or lose.
Final Score
Golden State 104
Detroit 96
Around the league - Jan 10
No comments:
Post a Comment