Warriors served big slice of humble pie
OAKLAND — The critics are feasting on the historic collapse by the Warriors, especially Stephen Curry.
The two-time MVP, and first unanimous winner, is being called to the carpet for his poor performance in the NBA Finals. And Curry is embracing it.
“I’ll take it on the chin because I know I didn’t play my best,” Curry said after his exit interview with Warriors’ management on Monday.
“That’s my own expectation and my own kind of self-assessment. I don’t need anybody else to tell me that. … I didn’t play my best. That’s not going to be the end of the story. That’s just going to be a down chapter in the book.”
The Warriors have been humbled. The same arrogance that had them dare to be legendary, shoot for every record and vanquish opponents, wound up getting the best of them in the NBA Finals. Their key pieces, those most responsible for their greatness, all had a hand in their demise. And now they are left to stew in the sting of coming oh-so-short of back-to-back championships.
The Warriors should be better for it. They will be better for it. Because how this went down forces them to look within. Because the figures that made them great each must look in the mirror and vow to be better.
Accountability from the best is where growth happens, and that’s how they make this a five-year run instead of a two-year blip.
“It makes us a lot hungrier to be better, never be satisfied,” Klay Thompson explained through a depressed tone. “We already reached that mountaintop. But everyone in this building knows we have the capability to see it plenty more times in our careers. So we just can’t be satisfied. We’ve just got to let it, as corny as it sounds, fuel the fire and stay hungry.”
Draymond Green is the easy target for the Warriors’ defeat. His suspension will go down as an all-time gaffe. He humbled himself and ’fessed up immediately after Game 7. But he isn’t alone.
Steve Kerr, too, has been humbled.
A master adjuster during last year’s title run, his moves in the fourth quarter were nothing short of headscratching.
All season, he leaned on his depth, sticking with role players when the moment felt ripe for his stars. It worked over the long haul as his players were usually the fresher down the stretch and at the end of the series.
But in Game 7, in a tight ballgame for all the marbles, Kerr turned to Harrison Barnes and Festus Ezeli, even though it was obvious they weren’t ready for the moment. Especially Ezeli, who LeBron James found as a mark to toy with and break out of his struggles.
James immediately went at Ezeli, turning the Warriors’ 4-point lead into a 2-point deficit in 44 seconds.
Meanwhile, Shaun Livingston and Leandro Barbosa, two positives in Game 7 and for the series, were glued to the bench. Kerr, the mastermind who lifted the Warriors from good to great, outsmarted himself by not leaning on his best players.
And the advanced offense Kerr brought was reduced to bad shots at awful times.
Even though Curry clearly wasn’t his usual self, the Warriors’ offense repeatedly called for the same pick-and-roll to get Curry switched onto a big man. But Curry didn’t have his usual movement and wound up easily trapped or hoisting 3-pointers over taller players — or off to the side as a decoy while his teammates went oneon-one.
Some ingenuity was needed, but Kerr stuck to the same options, and they never clicked. After pushing every right button last year, he pushed a few key wrong ones in the biggest games.
Curry, too, has been humbled.
He clearly was not 100 percent. His being unable to do what he wanted against Kevin Love, arguably the Cavaliers’ worst defender, illustrated how much Curry’s sprained MCL hijacked his change of direction and bursts in short spaces. It even took away his trademark stepto-the-side jumper.
With that said, Curry didn’t play smart. He spent the fourth quarter hunting for 3-pointers, and his behind-the-back pass down the stretch was indicative of his carelessness with the ball.
He figured his shooting would carry him. This was his chance to be like the great ones, who when limited physically, increase their focus and tighten up their attack. But Curry kept Currying.
The same fate befell Klay Thompson, who was 4-for-7 inside the arc but couldn’t push away from the 3-point buffet. But Curry is the team’s chief playmaker.
“There were probably three or four possessions where I personally settled,” Curry said, “looking for a big three when that’s not what the possession called for. Obviously, (if I make them), maybe we’re having a different conversation. But when you don’t execute like that, it haunts you.”
Joe Lacob, too, has been humbled.
As the CEO of the franchise, he set the tone for the bravado that marked the Warriors season. He famously said his franchise was light years ahead of its NBA counterparts. That mentality of brash dominance, coupled with relentless hype, made the Warriors a national villain.
Many outside the Bay Area and Cleveland eagerly rooted for the Warriors demise, hoped for them to get their comeuppance. In the end, the Warriors couldn’t rub it in their face once more. And now they have to eat it.
The lesson: don’t swag so hard, or be even more ready to back it up.
“A lot of people wanted to see us lose,” Green said. “They got their wish. I don’t know if they will get it a lot more times. But they got it this time. So it’s cool.” Read Marcus Thompson II’s blog at blogs.mercurynews. com/thompson. Contact him at mthomps2@ bayareanewsgroup.com. Follow him at twitter.com/ ThompsonScribe.