The Golden State Warriors are in a great position. After Sunday’s 109-100 victory over the Dallas Mavericks, the Warriors lead 3-0 in the Western Conference finals.
To date, 146 teams have led 3-0 in a series of the top seven in the NBA. These 146 teams have won all 146 times.
I like the Warriors chances.
But before we move on to Game 4 and potential swing, let’s evaluate the good guys who wished the Dubs to win in hostile territory. As always, we will evaluate the weighting according to our expectations of each player.
Note: The league’s average true shooting rate (TS) was 56.6% this year.
Draymond Green
37 minutes, 10 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 3 rebounds, 4 fouls, 5 against 10 shooting, 50.0% TS, +19
I was very critical of Green for his performance in Game 2, when he fought at both ends of the court, had constant foul problems and, frankly, was lucky not to be sent off.
I am not critical of this performance. Because this performance was very good.
Green’s defense was sensational in the victory in match 3, as he was everywhere on the court, playing the role of destroyer and rover absolutely brilliant.
He was aggressive in attack, which is huge for the Warriors with or without an effective result.
And he was the emotional engine of the team, as he always was when they were in their best form. He was screaming. He was talking nonsense. He was on fire.
He was Dray and he was great.
Rating: A-
Andrew Wiggins
40 minutes, 27 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 fouls, 11 against 20 shots, 1 against 5 three-pointers, 4 against 5 free throws, 60.8% TS, +22
Forget about a career with high points in the playoffs. Forget about the extremely impressive double-double and the elite rebound in a game in which the Dubs completely dominated Dallas in the cup. Forget about the trio of assists and lack of speed. Forget about the effectiveness that Warriors will take nine days a week.
For evaluation purposes, these things do not matter, because if you do the following when you win, you get a perfect score.
The other things were really great too.
Rating: A +
Post-game bonus: He led the team in the plus / minus and took lives.
Caven Looney
29 minutes, 9 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 reversal, 3 fouls, 3-for-4 shots, 3-for-4 free throws, 78.1% TS, +5
For the second consecutive match Luni made 12 fights. And for the second consecutive game, he scored a one-sided rebound, as the Warriors defeated the Mavs in the cup with 47-33.
The Mavs have no answer for Looney and … look, I love writing this sentence as much as you read it.
Rating: A
Post-game bonus: Lead the wrestling team.
Steph Curry
39 minutes, 31 points, 5 rebounds, 11 assists, 3 rebounds, 5 steals, 10-for-20 shots, 5-for-10 threes, 6-for-6 free throws, 68.5% TS, +19
Curry’s gravity continues to be one of the most mesmerizing things in the NBA. In addition to the 11 assists he amassed – a huge number – there were countless games in which teammates were widely watched because Dallas paid full attention to Steph.
And the moment there was little room to breathe – either because of a defect in defense, or because he imposed the problem – he made the Mavs pay.
Just present a superstar to the end and a master class on how to manipulate defense to get the things you want.
Rating: A
Post-game bonus: Lead the team in points and assists.
Clay Thompson
39 minutes, 19 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 fouls, 6-for-18 shots, 3-for-10 threes, 4-for-4 free throws, 48.1% TS, +13
Clay was really struggling to find his shot in this game, although I think the choice of shots was pretty good. The shots just didn’t fall.
However, he made several huge punches in the area and had the feeling that he was trying to make sure that the Warriors could end the series as soon as possible so that he could rest before one last push for the title.
After a disappointing defensive game on Friday, Thompson looked really good in defense in that game and he did the little things by playing 39 minutes without a turnaround and swallowing a few boards.
It looked good, just the shot didn’t fall.
Rating: B-
Otto Porter Jr.
7 minutes, 2 points, 1 rebound, shooting 1 for 2, 50.0% TS, -8
Porter left the game in the second quarter due to a problem with his leg … the other leg, not the one that eliminated him against Memphis.
He was sensational in those playoffs and the Warriors really needed him to get back on the court.
Rating: Worried
Juan Toscano-Anderson
5 minutes, 0 points, 1 turn, -7
With the exception of one odd second in defense, this was the first trouble-free time for the JTA in these playoffs. The oaks had to dig deep into the bench, with Porter, Andre Iguodala and Gary Peyton II being removed and Damien Lee playing poorly on Friday.
So JTA got his number and although he didn’t do much, it was nice to see him there.
Rating: C +
Jordan Poole
28 minutes, 10 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 2 turnovers, 4 fouls, 2-for-4 shooting, 2-for-4 threes, 4-for-4 free throws, 86.8% TS, -6
Although I prefer games in which Poole burns the nets, it was really fun to see him play a low-scoring game with high efficiency. He showed some really impressive restraint.
He is ungodly talented and learns the best ways to choose his seats, while knowing when to give way to his teammates.
He also did many other things well in this game and was promoted for shooting the dagger at the end of the game.
Rating: B
Moses Moody
16 minutes, 1 point, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 foul, 0-for-3, 0-for-3 threes, 1-for-2 free throws, 12.9% TS, -12
Moody got Lee’s minutes and although it went very well in the second half of Game 2, it didn’t work very well in Game 3.
He is still doing a good job of avoiding bad mistakes, and this is proof for the rookie that Steve Kerr has entrusted him with the defense of Luka Doncic. But not a very strong performance.
Rating: C +
Post-game bonus: The team’s worst plus / minus.
Weekly DNPs: Nemanja Bjelica, Jonathan Cuminga, Damion Lee
Inactive on Sunday: Andre Iguodala, Gary Peyton II, James Wiseman
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