This is what happens when you try to get by without a center, Warriors. You see what happens? THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS. They tried guarding Jusuf “Maglić” Nurkic with Kevon Looney (who actually is a center but it didn’t work), and then they tried Draymond Green because everyone keeps saying that he can guard every position. Guess what? He can’t. At least, not when the player he’s guarding is 300 pounds of Bosnian man-meat with moves like a ballerina and touch like George Gervin. Then they tried Kevin Durant, but what chance did that beanpole have against Maglić? No chance at all, it turns out.
And so the Warriors lost, defeated by their own hubris once again. Nurkic dropped 27 points on them, Damian Lillard hit the game winner after a horrible Stephen Curry turnover, and I have the sense that we are seeing an empire fall right before our eyes. Or it’s just me really wanting to believe that the Bucks have a shot at a championship this year.
Oh, and I’d like to apologize for stupidly thinking that the days of elbow-passing (no, not the White chocolate kind of elbow-passing) Nurkic were over. I don’t know why I thought that, but I did, and it turns out he’s still getting hella assists. I think he’s still trying to prove that he can be just as good as Nikola Jokic, honestly, but that’s a good thing for the Blazers. Gotta keep him motivated, otherwise he gets all pouty and sulky.