Upperclass wrote:Warriors will have a MUCH easier time vs the Wolves. Aside from Ant, their athleticism is only strength and vertical.. the Rockets athleticism was lateral speed, strength and vertical.. the Warriors offense is tailored for a Minn style lineup vs a Rockets style lineup. Dubs vs OKC will go 7. OKC is part Houston, part Minn.
I don't agree with this scouting report at all.
The Wolves have just as many BIG perimeter defenders: Jaden, NAW, Ant (and they can dust off Jaylen Clark or TSJ if they needed them for some reason). One of our main defensive strengths over 2 seasons has been ball pressure. Behind that ball pressure we have better rim protection. We don't have Amen Thompson, but Ant is a shot blocking athlete and Jaden is 6'10" and one of the very best ball hawks in the league. What specifically do you see Houston having that the Wolves don't, defensively?
I think the Rockets and Wolves are similar, except the Wolves can actually play some offense. We don't have the same offensive rebounding super power, but we have a super functional offense.
The main tools we have that the Rockets didn't are:
- Elite 3-point shooting. Top 5 in attempts and efficiency. If you want to pack the paint, we're excited to shoot open threes.
- We're not 3-point reliant. While we're willing to bomb 3s, our identity is a driving team. We shot poorly from 3 against the Lakers and still murdered them.
- An all-star scorer that can break down the defense and score at 3 levels. Ant is going to be a more complicated problem for the Warriors than Sengun (or Jalen Green?) was. Ant can shoot pull up 3s, so you have to pressure the ball. Ant can drive, and the Warriors are small and thin on the perimeter (who is even going to be Ant's primary defender?). The Warriors have Draymond, who's a better rim protector than anyone on the Lakers, but they're still a tiny team of shorties going up against an athletic guard and a frontcourt where all 3 players are taller than the Warriors tallest starter.
The size is a bit crazy in this one. Draymond is bigger than his height (only 6'5.75" but with a 7'1" wingspan), which gives him similar dimension to Julius Randle (6'7.75 with a 7'0" winspan). The problem is, Julius is the Wolves 3rd tallest starter. Jaden is 6'9" with a 6'11" winspan, while Rudy is 7'1" with a 7'8" winspan. Butler is a quarter inch taller than Draymond (still shorter than Randle), but only has a 6'7.5" winspan. There's no relief in the backccourt where Curry and Podz have to match up against Ant/NAW/DDV. Conley is the only smaller player.
The Warriors have a problem where they can't put size on the floor without losing all spacing. Since Dray/Jimmy are already undersized and can't shoot, Quentin Post is the only viable way to size up in the frontcourt. They'd love to be able to play more Looney, but it too often means 3 non-shooters on the court. The Wolves play constant 2-big lineups without being short on spacing or matchup versatility.
The Warriors are better defensively than the Lakers, but even smaller and more vulnerable on the boards. We just watched them go to 7 games because Houston could simply grab 31% of their own misses.
Can you explain what about the Warriors is "tailored for a Minn style lineup"? To me, the Wolves come into this series with glaring advantages, and the Warriors will need to be crafty to make this a series.
