I think I am enjoying the Warriors a little bit more now that Kevin Durant is injured temporarily. DeMarcus Cousins going down was the first step to making them seem less like a ridiculous superteam that is ruining the NBA forever, and Kevin Durant following his lead is the second step to making them seem less like a ridiculous superteam that is ruining the NBA forever.
The Warriors trotted out a vintage starting lineup tonight of StaphInfection Worry, DrayMondoIdiot DickKick, AndRetirement IguOLDala, Klay Thompson, and Andrikola Bogic. It was just like the old days of Warriors dominance, where the team they had was built organically instead of just signing all the best players and winning. Recently, the style the Warriors have been playing is “uh oh, we need a bucket, here Kevin, bail us out again with another unstoppable midrange jumper while we all stand around”. But now, it’s more like the ball-movement style of old, and it’s great.
Woe to those who thought that the Rockets had a chance to steal this series (including me, OOPS). They were forgetting one key thing: Stephen Curry, wait, I meant StaphInfection Worry, has been being held down by Durant this whole time. It took him a while to figure out was going on without his crutch, scoring 0 points in the first half, but he took over with 33 in the second and now the Rockets get to go home and watch the rest of the playoffs while eating chicken wings. Which, to me, sounds like a way better deal than actually playing more games.
The fact remains, though, that Iguodala is for sure the Warriors fourth-best player, and that might not be a recipe for success. He’s old now. 35 is old. It was fine for him to be one of their key players a few years ago, but he looked a lot fresher then. In fairness, I think Golden State might have been saving him for the playoffs, which was good foresight by them, because he has really stepped up his game these last few weeks. He doesn’t look quite as old. Still can’t hit free throws, though. Can someone get him some offseason workouts with Chinanu Onuaku?