The New Orleans Pelicans were thrilled to make the NBA Playoffs. On Saturday, they got their wake-up call. The league-leading Warriors flexed their full muscle, racing to a 15-point first-quarter lead and winning Game 1, 106-99. The Pelicans made a late run that proved fruitless, so the game was more lopsided than the final score indicated.
Golden State jumped on New Orleans from the start. The Warriors' switches and defensive rotations stymied the Pelicans' offense, and they feasted on primary and secondary fast breaks. New Orleans was lost on both ends, allowing the lead to push to 26-11 on an easy Stephen Curry finger roll.
The Pelicans rallied against a bench-heavy Warriors unit in the second quarter and even cut the lead to five on a Quincy Pondexter three. But Golden State turned it up to end the quarter, going on a 15-2 run to close the half with an 18-point lead.
New Orleans made a furious charge late, slicing the deficit to six with a minute left and then to four in the final 10 seconds. Anthony Davis came alive after a poor first three quarters, scoring 20 in the fourth. But in the end, it was too little, too late.
Curry led the way with 34 points, including this silly layup over Davis near the end of the first half.
But it was a balanced effort, as four other Warriors scored in double-figures. The Warriors held Davis down until his big fourth quarter and forced New Orleans to shoot 42 percent for the game. Making matters worse, Pelicans starting guard Tyreke Evans left the game with a knee injury. His status for the rest of the series is in doubt.
3 things we learned
1. Stephen Curry is quite good. Who knew?
This game showed why Curry is the favorite to win MVP. It's not just that he scored so many points, it's that his mere presence tilted the geometry of the floor. There's a reason the Pelicans kept getting beat on backdoor cuts and other easy drives to the lane. Curry's presence creates those opportunities, whether directly or indirectly. It's also no accident that the Pelicans looked most competent when Curry was on the bench.
The Pelicans tried size (Quincy Pondexter) and speed (Jrue Holiday) on Curry, but neither worked. To be fair, it wasn't really their fault. The first line of defense on Curry was fine, but New Orleans' big men did a poor job helping their perimeter guys out, whether hedging, dropping or switching. Which leads us to ...
2. The Pelicans' D was a disaster
As well as Golden State played offensively, New Orleans made it easy on them. Omer Asik is normally a defensive force, but he was constantly caught in no-man's land in pick and roll coverage, guarding neither the ball nor his own man. The perimeter players botched rotations, allowing the slow-footed Alexis Ajinca to guard Curry on one embarrassing first-quarter possession. Golden State is tough to stop, but the Pelicans allowed far too many layups.
Yet Davis may have been the worst offender. Davis has a great defensive reputation because he gets so many blocks and deflections due to his length. He will be a force in time. But his pick and roll coverage and help rotations have been spotty all year and were particularly poor in the first three quarters of this game. He's too often caught with his arms down on the opposite side and doesn't hedge out in a threatening manner.
3. The Warriors' D was great ... but New Orleans may have a solution
We'd be remiss not to mention the Warriors' own defensive prowess. Their perimeter players were flying to begin the game and their off-ball switches confused New Orleans early. The Pelicans eventually adjusted, but that's when Bogut began to enforce his will on the game. He stopped guarding Asik when he was in the game, instead helping on any Davis post-up and mucking up all Pelicans off-ball actions. Bogut's help defense aided Draymond Green, who had a typically marvelous defensive effort himself.
But the Pelicans may have discovered something in the fourth quarter. It's no accident that Davis played his best when Asik was out and Ryan Anderson was in. Bogut could no longer roam off his man to help on Davis, which led to his scoring explosion in the fourth. New Orleans generally gives away a defensive advantage by playing Anderson over Asik, but Anderson can handle Bogut without having his lack of lateral quickness exposed.
The Pelicans may need to consider starting Anderson and playing Asik against bench-heavy units only. This is a short series, so adjustments must be made quickly.