Warriors @ Rockets : NBA Cup Quarterfinals

[Onus]

How to put this?

The closing lineup didn't close.

Kerr doesn’t have a closing lineup. He has a I suck at determining who should play lineup to close though.

He keeps subbing people in and out for certain possessions then they have to play the other side of the court and he’s stuck.

Like wtf is a lineup of curry/gp2/jk/dray/looney supposed to do on offense?

kerr's always been ass at late game rotations. we lost a championship because of it (and I'd argue we should've at least push kawhi to 7)

with steph he didn't have too many close games to learn from. last night's was particularly abonimable - if podz is taking your hail mary game winner something has gone horribly wrong

It was a terrible play to close the game that's for sure.

Curry isn't a basketball genius. He's been blessed that these things don't hurt him but he doesn't maximize his chances to win because winning comes rather easy to him.

[Chris Porter's Hair]

Very frustrating game. Lots of horrible takes here. I'm incredulous at all the "Any shot Curry takes is a good shot." Oh? Suppose he could have run the clock out by just holding the ball. Would that have been a good shot? Suppose he could have run it down to 0.5 seconds. Would that have been a good shot? The point being made here is that even if he didn't shoot at all, Houston would have had to inbound and score in like 3 seconds. If we even hit the rim on a shot, it probably would have been closer to 1 second. While it would have been fun if Steph made that shot, I'd rather 'win' than 'fun'.

[Jester_]

Very frustrating game. Lots of horrible takes here. I'm incredulous at all the "Any shot Curry takes is a good shot." Oh? Suppose he could have run the clock out by just holding the ball. Would that have been a good shot? Suppose he could have run it down to 0.5 seconds. Would that have been a good shot? The point being made here is that even if he didn't shoot at all, Houston would have had to inbound and score in like 3 seconds. If we even hit the rim on a shot, it probably would have been closer to 1 second. While it would have been fun if Steph made that shot, I'd rather 'win' than 'fun'.

agreed, Steph **** up, and can't give JK **** for an obvious blown call. our decision to play Podz and gp2 is another story but whatever... onto the next one

[WarriorGM]

A few things.

This team won't stop committing turnovers. I just watched a game against an outmanned Dallas team during the 73 win season and the only reason the game was close was because of the turnovers. The difference then and now? The team was simply better then and now they can't get away with it anymore. So, Steve Kerr has never addressed this issue. Draymond and Steph just make some of the craziest, risky, passes anyone has ever seen. They're good passers but come on.

In this game against the Rockets on the last possession of the 3rd quarter, Kerr refused to bring Curry back in the game. Of course they didn't score and I think everyone was thinking that might be a costly decision. Losing by 1 point, that decision looks so much worse.

So much is wrong with this team. They're fading fast right now. And I still view a trade -- any trade -- as unlikely.

What a mess.

This was a development game. We’re still tinkering with lineups. Steve has no clue who to play. We weren’t trying to go all out to win this game. Which is why it’s hilarious Kerr was trying to act like he was trying to go to Vegas.

Your lineup choices said otherwise.

We can moan about Podz being out there late in the game but at the end of the day I'm less inclined to leave this at Kerr's door. I don't see much of a rotation problem. 4 championship vets in Steph, Draymond, Looney, GPII and prospective future franchise player Kuminga were on the floor at the end—and they weren't able to seal the deal. They had the lead, they weren't fighting from behind, and the execution left a lot to be desired. There's been a tendency to blame stuff on the young guys, the new guys, the end of bench guys, or sulking Klay but this is on the vets. There is a degree of randomness to these things and the next game beckons but I hope the vets take time to reflect on this.

[Onus]

A few things.

This team won't stop committing turnovers. I just watched a game against an outmanned Dallas team during the 73 win season and the only reason the game was close was because of the turnovers. The difference then and now? The team was simply better then and now they can't get away with it anymore. So, Steve Kerr has never addressed this issue. Draymond and Steph just make some of the craziest, risky, passes anyone has ever seen. They're good passers but come on.

In this game against the Rockets on the last possession of the 3rd quarter, Kerr refused to bring Curry back in the game. Of course they didn't score and I think everyone was thinking that might be a costly decision. Losing by 1 point, that decision looks so much worse.

So much is wrong with this team. They're fading fast right now. And I still view a trade -- any trade -- as unlikely.

What a mess.

This was a development game. We’re still tinkering with lineups. Steve has no clue who to play. We weren’t trying to go all out to win this game. Which is why it’s hilarious Kerr was trying to act like he was trying to go to Vegas.

Your lineup choices said otherwise.

We can moan about Podz being out there late in the game but at the end of the day I'm less inclined to leave this at Kerr's door. I don't see much of a rotation problem. 4 championship vets in Steph, Draymond, Looney, GPII and prospective future franchise player Kuminga were on the floor at the end—and they weren't able to seal the deal. They had the lead, they weren't fighting from behind, and the execution left a lot to be desired. There's been a tendency to blame stuff on the young guys, the new guys, the end of bench guys, or sulking Klay but this is on the vets. There is a degree of randomness to these things and the next game beckons but I hope the vets take time to reflect on this.

Steph/Dray/Looney/GP2/JK what are they supposed to do on offense? This is not a serious lineup in 2024. There's not a single threat at the 3 point line outside of Steph. We can't score so what do we do? Put in guys that can't score that'll fix the problem. That's just a ridiculous lineup that shouldn't be played. That's essentially playing 4 centers. That's not randomness that's just a terrible lineup. I cannot stress how piss poor of a lineup that is.

With the way our roster is currently constructed, Buddy has to close. He wasn't even bad on defense. Until Buddy is a full time closer regardless if it's a defensive possession we're going to be poor closing team that will struggle to score. I don't care if we're on defense, Buddy should be closing, unless there's like 3 seconds left and we're on defense then ok fine. But this I'm going to be cute and switch my lineup for a defensive possession then call a timeout to get buddy in and then take him out and hope and pray I can get him back in just is not going to work. Wasted a timeout so he couldn't challenge later in the game just because Kerr was trying to go offense defense.

[HiRez]

What concerns me is the Rockets are close enough to be the Warriors' equal, at least on a head to head matchup basis. They are flawed, but they're getting a little better by the week, the Warriors are not. Facing this team in a playoff series is a dicey proposition and I don't think "veteran savvy" is enough to give them an edge anymore. Plus they have Brooks to take someone out if needed, last time it was GP2, maybe next time it's Steph.

[floppymoose]

Lots of horrible takes here.

[CDM_Stats]

It forces Steph to move.

Trying to blame this on Steph is way too creative way to shield the refs/kerr/gp2/dray/looney from criticism.

Steph actually got a really good shot. He just missed it. And if he doesn’t take it early we might not even get a chance to shoot again if the scrum happens and the refs still decide to call a foul.

are you serious? Quit always justifying a bad position youve taken

If he shoots it at 4 seconds, it takes a second to get to the rim. It takes a second to land, and that's if its clean. If its not, its game over. Sure, anyone could be blamed for a 1 pt loss. But if you think Steph took a good shot with that much time left, in a defensive game, its ridiculous. He makes dumb plays too, and this was a dumb play.

I don't really have a problem with Steph's shot. He was open, and if he makes it, he's doing a night-night. Also, I'm guessing the previous possessions were in his head, where they couldn't even get a shot off at all. Make or miss league, and he just happened to miss this one. It happens, shrug.

If anyone could take it, he could. But he shouldnt - its still a 40% chance to win the game that way, whereas shooting a lower % shot and having the opportunity to leave no time at all is what anyone who wants to win would do

[510TWSS]

Damn 24 hrs later and I still can’t believe we lost this game. Steph had to just wait longer and hit the rim. Would’ve been 1-2 seconds left.

Or if we call TO quick enough when GP came down with the offensive rebound.

Literally the worst outcome happened to close that game.

Please Dunleavy make a trade so I feel like I’m not displaying a level of insanity expecting something different

[CDM_Stats]

Jalen green might have a worse handle than kuminga.

Think he's a lot like Wiggins.. he'll do better when expectations are lowered. Think he's better defensively than he gets credit for too

Would you pay Green or kuminga 35M per year?

I would absolutely consider paying Green that.. I'd have to see more of him though. But I'm more inclined to pay a 2 way player who could be a good defender and good 3rd option than JK, who may have more scoring upside but less defensive impact

[CDM_Stats]

I’m kind of shocked they didn’t start looney considering how much looney locks up Sengun.

Agreed - especially since Dray has apparently been OK with coming off the bench. Not that Dray is bad against Sengun, but this is a gift to the Rockets.. Looney crushed Sengun last time. He only got a little bit of air against TJD. If Dray doesnt lock up Sengun then its a good 2nd guess of Kerr's starters

Draymond is gonna get matched up on the centers that aren't big bruisers.

If we're allowing qualifiers to the starting lineup, then why draw the line at something so generic and mostly ineffective?

If the starting lineup is malleable for any reason, that reason should be to do whats best for the team. Looney iced Sengun last time, JK did great keeping the Rockets off-balance offensively.. go with that. On top of that, not having a second PG with Podz and the backups made the 2nd unit come to a screeching halt at times

Analytics has been right about a lot this year so far.. no reason to just dip a toe or qualify it with an old school mentality like Looney vs big and Dray vs small. Looney might crush the small ones and Dray might out-quick the bigs. Playing it just by size is basically saying that all big Cs play one way and all small Cs play another, and that's the antithesis of analytics - not making broad generalizations, but making specific moves based on a ton of information

[powerball1373]

are you serious? Quit always justifying a bad position youve taken

If he shoots it at 4 seconds, it takes a second to get to the rim. It takes a second to land, and that's if its clean. If its not, its game over. Sure, anyone could be blamed for a 1 pt loss. But if you think Steph took a good shot with that much time left, in a defensive game, its ridiculous. He makes dumb plays too, and this was a dumb play.

I don't really have a problem with Steph's shot. He was open, and if he makes it, he's doing a night-night. Also, I'm guessing the previous possessions were in his head, where they couldn't even get a shot off at all. Make or miss league, and he just happened to miss this one. It happens, shrug.

If anyone could take it, he could. But he shouldnt - its still a 40% chance to win the game that way, whereas shooting a lower % shot and having the opportunity to leave no time at all is what anyone who wants to win would do

Were the Rockets out of TO's? I don't remember. If they were, then I agree he should have shot later, but if they had 1 left then I'm still fine with the shot.

Edit: quick look through the play-by-play and it looks like they called 6 timeouts, which would leave 1 remaining, unless they lost it to an unsuccessful challenge.

[Twinkie defense]

Agreed - especially since Dray has apparently been OK with coming off the bench. Not that Dray is bad against Sengun, but this is a gift to the Rockets.. Looney crushed Sengun last time. He only got a little bit of air against TJD. If Dray doesnt lock up Sengun then its a good 2nd guess of Kerr's starters

Draymond is gonna get matched up on the centers that aren't big bruisers.

If we're allowing qualifiers to the starting lineup, then why draw the line at something so generic and mostly ineffective?

If the starting lineup is malleable for any reason, that reason should be to do whats best for the team. Looney iced Sengun last time, JK did great keeping the Rockets off-balance offensively.. go with that. On top of that, not having a second PG with Podz and the backups made the 2nd unit come to a screeching halt at times

Analytics has been right about a lot this year so far.. no reason to just dip a toe or qualify it with an old school mentality like Looney vs big and Dray vs small. Looney might crush the small ones and Dray might out-quick the bigs. Playing it just by size is basically saying that all big Cs play one way and all small Cs play another, and that's the antithesis of analytics - not making broad generalizations, but making specific moves based on a ton of information

The team is concerned about Draymond's longevity. It's not about whether Looney can lock down Segun, it's about having Draymond fresh for the playoffs. They want to play Draymond as much as possible, and don't want to use him up getting crushed by Joel Embiid.

[superunknown]

Very frustrating game. Lots of horrible takes here. I'm incredulous at all the "Any shot Curry takes is a good shot." Oh? Suppose he could have run the clock out by just holding the ball. Would that have been a good shot? Suppose he could have run it down to 0.5 seconds. Would that have been a good shot? The point being made here is that even if he didn't shoot at all, Houston would have had to inbound and score in like 3 seconds. If we even hit the rim on a shot, it probably would have been closer to 1 second. While it would have been fun if Steph made that shot, I'd rather 'win' than 'fun'.

but the point is not "any shot curry takes is a good shot". the point in this instance was more when he takes that shot.
he should've run the clock down more, instead he took the shot with 12.4 on the clock. that was the problem. it wasn't the shot per se, it was the timing of it. horrible mistake, he should have thought better in that situation.
then that idiot of billy kennedy or what the f*** is his name did the rest.

[floppymoose]

Uhh, thats what CPH was saying

[Crazy-Canuck]

Check out game theory pod on YouTube. Sam V broke down this game. Basically playing so many non shooters just made it easier for the Rockets defend us. Sengun on gp2 was singled out to neutralize the biggest issue the Rockets have on defense.

[Onus]

Check out game theory pod on YouTube. Sam V broke down this game. Basically playing so many non shooters just made it easier for the Rockets defend us. Sengun on gp2 was singled out to neutralize the biggest issue the Rockets have on defense.

That’s what I’ve been saying. Kerr’s closing lineups have been ass. Why don’t we score to close games because we’re essentially just hoping steph gets hot because we’re playing nothing but defenders and no one else can shoot or score. How do we expect to score when no one else is a threat? Buddy has to close just to open up some type of space but for some reason Kerr wants to get cute and take him out. Our closing lineup is by far and away the most important thing that needs to be fixed.

[Crazy-Canuck]

Check out game theory pod on YouTube. Sam V broke down this game. Basically playing so many non shooters just made it easier for the Rockets defend us. Sengun on gp2 was singled out to neutralize the biggest issue the Rockets have on defense.

That’s what I’ve been saying. Kerr’s closing lineups have been ass. Why don’t we score to close games because we’re essentially just hoping steph gets hot because we’re playing nothing but defenders and no one else can shoot or score. How do we expect to score when no one else is a threat? Buddy has to close just to open up some type of space but for some reason Kerr wants to get cute and take him out. Our closing lineup is by far and away the most important thing that needs to be fixed.

I cant fully blame Kerr though, some, but not all. We have a roster issue and some bad luck.

Steph needs to be out there. And dray needs to be out there. We will probably run some version of a dho or pnr or a split screen. The opponents know this is as well. You want screeners, off ball movers, and shooters out there.

That's Buddy. That's loon. Now that 5th guy should be probably be another shooter. Who's left?

Its jk or podz or gp2. Kerr is kinda stuck here. All those choices aren't great. Now add in that the guys have to be on the same page. That takes podz and jk out which leaves only gp2. So, basically anything Kerr does, hes going to have 3 non shooters on the court. Its why the loss of melton and wiggins hurts.

Its why I believe if a trade happens, we need to add some shooting by shipping out some non shooters. If we trade Wiggins for cam Johnson, does that really help? Imo, it makes us worse. Its why I'm off Jimmy. We trade more shooting (wiggs and maybe heild) for more non shooting.

[Onus]

Check out game theory pod on YouTube. Sam V broke down this game. Basically playing so many non shooters just made it easier for the Rockets defend us. Sengun on gp2 was singled out to neutralize the biggest issue the Rockets have on defense.

That’s what I’ve been saying. Kerr’s closing lineups have been ass. Why don’t we score to close games because we’re essentially just hoping steph gets hot because we’re playing nothing but defenders and no one else can shoot or score. How do we expect to score when no one else is a threat? Buddy has to close just to open up some type of space but for some reason Kerr wants to get cute and take him out. Our closing lineup is by far and away the most important thing that needs to be fixed.

I cant fully blame Kerr though, some, but not all. We have a roster issue and some bad luck.

Steph needs to be out there. And dray needs to be out there. We will probably run some version of a dho or pnr or a split screen. The opponents know this is as well. You want screeners, off ball movers, and shooters out there.

That's Buddy. That's loon. Now that 5th guy should be probably be another shooter. Who's left?

Its jk or podz or gp2. Kerr is kinda stuck here. All those choices aren't great. Now add in that the guys have to be on the same page. That takes podz and jk out which leaves only gp2. So, basically anything Kerr does, hes going to have 3 non shooters on the court. Its why the loss of melton and wiggins hurts.

Its why I believe if a trade happens, we need to add some shooting by shipping out some non shooters. If we trade Wiggins for cam Johnson, does that really help? Imo, it makes us worse. Its why I'm off Jimmy. We trade more shooting (wiggs and maybe heild) for more non shooting.

That’s why I want cam. I think he has to close with cam and that adds another shooter who is at least decent defensively. That will open up the floor since he doesn’t want to close w buddy.

A closing lineup of curry/wiggins/cam/dray allows him to play gp or looney. Though I’d go with buddy. Let’s see who would be able to stop us now.

[superunknown]

that melton's ijury really fu**ed us up.