2022 NBA Finals Game 5 Observations

For each game during the Finals, I will take notes of random things I observed or thought throughout the game and will post it either the day of or day after each game.  These are my notes regarding Game 5, which the Warriors won 104-94 after the Celtics’ offense decided to stop trying what was working.

 

 

Quarter 1

·         Golden State is starting the same small ball lineup starting and I don’t like it.  While I have heard multiple suggest that’s to limit Looney’s minutes, I’d prefer to start Looney over Green for like 4 minutes to offset the disadvantage in the paint (not that it would ever happen)

·         Already the Celtics have 2 quick sloppy turnovers.  Not a good start

·         Everyone will talk about how the small ball lineup for Golden State was able to get them off to this fast lead, but I think the bigger story is that Draymond is finally more aggressive offensively and the Celtics are the opposite

·         The Celtics are going to lose.  Already Tatum looks lost, Brown looks like he’s only caring about his points, and the rest of the team seems apathetic

·         Evidently the Celtics still haven’t learned that when screens are set with a great shooter shooting then that’s not the right time to drop on the screen

·         That’s a good idea to run right at Looney for foul number 3.  The best bet for the Celtics to win this at this rate is to have him foul out

·         The Celtics can’t hit anything because they’re taking stupid shots.  Marcus Smart just took a contested unreal shot and I don’t understand why they keep doing this.  They’re lucky the Warriors have missed a few easy ones and are only up by 9 right now

·         I’m okay with allowing Gary Payton II to get the open 3.  He doesn’t take a ton of shots to begin with and is decent, not elite

·         I hate the Jaylen Brown attempt that was a contested midrange shot.  It was a low-percentage look and there was time to create a much better look.  This makes it clear that he does not care about if they win right now

·         Why are 2 Celtics players at the top of the key next to the ball?  Do they all seriously want the ball that much and don’t care about spacing the floor anymore?

·         I like what the Warriors have done defensively.  It is easy to play down to an opponent who is struggling but they’re giving them the terrible opportunities the Celtics have favored this quarter

·         Everyone seemed so shocked by the Robert Williams pass, but he is a good passer for a big.  Normally he is a bit unselfish in the paint

·         I didn’t like the 2-for-1 attempt from Jordan Poole.  Analytically you’re better with taking 10 extra seconds for a good look than you are heaving a shot up to bank on getting another shot

·         Of course a foul would occur at the end of the quarter for the Celtics.  Just add to how brutal this quarter has been

Quarter 2

·         I’ve never loved the idea of fouling shortly into the quarter.  It really doesn’t matter in the big scheme of things whether Bjelica fouled him 15 seconds in or 2 minutes in, just maybe me being neurotic

·         That was a nice block but the fact Draymond is driving in is massive.  He had been afraid to attack but has been doing that a lot more this game

·         Another sloppy turnover by the Celtics; they’re really making this easy for the Warriors

·         I was shocked Andrew Wiggins missed that shot.  It’s not that the midrange shot with Rob Williams in his airspace wasn’t easy necessarily but still he’s been so good in the playoffs

·         I remember wishing Wiggins would take more 3’s than midrange but now he’s been using the midrange as the opportunity to drive and make plays

·         It’s insane that it’s been over 18 minutes and they’re getting good looks but the Celtics keep missing 3’s

·         That was good positioning by Tatum to prevent Iguodala to complete that pass.  He realized there was an open man and switched back onto that man while blocking the passing lane; world-class reaction defense

·         The Celtics free throw shooting will be something to watch, as they’ve missed a few now

·         I had a total brain fart moment:  Mike Breen said, “those two have had a connection for more than a decade” and I wondered what connection Curry and Smart have had since Smart fouled Curry, only for me to realize they meant Draymond, who passed Curry the ball

·         I don’t love the foul call against Payton for boxing out Horford.  I wasn’t sure it was even a foul on him to be honest

·         Wiggins being as aggressive as he is has been a saving grace for Golden State since Curry has struggled so far

·         Boston has turned the ball over so much, something that is bound to be a concern for them

·         Look, Golden State’s offense is right where Boston wants it, but Boston can’t hit a shot, making it look like it’s closer to a blowout than it is

Quarter 3

·         Another quarter where the Celtics almost immediately got to the line and within 30 seconds there were two fouls that were shooting fouls

·         I was surprised when Curry passed it out to Otto Porter with the shot clock winding down; if the shot clock wasn’t less than 2 it would have absolutely been the right decision, but this is a little different

·         Halftime really helped the Celtics so far; they had some good looks in the second quarter that weren’t falling, so it’s not surprising to see that now they’re hitting their shots

·         I can’t believe Thompson just missed an open 3 on that one.  I can’t say I expected he would struggle as badly as he has this series

·         Someone needs to drive towards Tatum if he is double teamed and can’t get out of the trap; I said the same thing related to Jaylen Brown last game

·         This might be shocking but if you’re Boston you’re thrilled when Curry takes a deep 3 early in the quarter; it isn’t the best look for him and gives them a break playing defense

·         Wiggins’ 3 attempt missed, but I liked Golden State’s offense on that play.  Tatum was badly out of the picture and was lost trying to find the open man and the Warriors had nice ball movement to get Wiggins an open 3

·         I think Rob Williams accidentally tipped one in on the wrong end; that’s got to be the worst feeling in the world there; poor guy

·         The Celtics are starting to play a bit sloppier again; that is something to keep in mind since they often struggle with more than 12 turnovers, a value they’ve already surpassed

·         It was obvious Tatum was going to attempt the 3 over Wiggins and I was sitting there trying to tell him not to do it; it didn’t work and he airballed it.  I think he telegraphed it a bit much

·         Curry’s midrange shot missed there but I liked the attempt, as he had been missing everything from 3 so it makes sense to attempt one a bit closer

·         Thompson picking up foul number 4 is big since he was hitting his shots and few others were

·         I like how the Celtics are targeting Curry and Poole and then flying by them to drive into the paint; doing this has forced a lot of fouls and can back the Warriors against the wall later

·         Again, someone needs to run towards Tatum if he’s double teamed and trapped; nobody did that and the Celtics couldn’t get a good look to end the quarter as well as allowing the Warriors to get the late heave up

Quarter 4

·         I like that Tatum is more aggressive than he was in the first, but he needs to be smart with his shots; he’s being double teamed or heavily covered and is now ignoring open guys

·         I wrote the above note and then he made a nice pass to Derrick White who attempted an open 3; even though White missed it, it was a great look

·         The slap in the elbow foul has got to be among the most obnoxious fouls to be at the receiving end of; it doesn’t look like it would be agonizing or anything like that but no fun even still

·         Marcus Smart, flopping against Thompson to allow him an open 3 is probably the most moronic thing you could have done in that situation

·         I am so confused by the shot of the seals there but sure, why not

·         But Marcus Smart didn’t commit an offensive foul there…

·         I have always hated when the refs call delayed fouls; I get that they can’t call everything a foul, but it’s not magically a foul because the player missed the shot

·         That was crazy that Marcus Smart got back to prevent the fastbreak 2-on-1 bucket; I was surprised Curry didn’t have a quicker trigger on that

·         Can Boston ban Jaylen Brown from dribbling a lot?  He keeps turning the ball over because he overdribbles

·         Boston has stopped playing effective offense and I feel safe saying now that they will lose.  They really are not a good isolation team, but they keep falling back on that, which is something I was afraid of in the playoffs

·         The Celtics are lucky they’re not losing by more; the Warriors have missed several great looks and the Celtics keep missing free throws

·         The broadcasters keep focusing on the fact that Curry hasn’t hit a 3 yet, but I am marveled at the way he has adjusted with that; he has been aggressive at driving and passing

·         Did the rules change about allowing players on the court?  They must have since Jordan Poole was on the court during a play despite not being checked in

·         Good idea for Kerr to challenge the foul on Draymond.  He would have 6, so the challenge will likely make it called on Curry (even though there wasn’t enough to normally call a foul, any illegal contact has to be ruled a foul on the reply)

·         Interesting to have Grant Williams be the lone Celtics big out there; the Warriors should drive in the paint a lot

·         That was one heck of a dunk by Wiggins, wow

·         Now the Celtics decided the right way to handle an open man was to leave Klay Thompson open behind the arc to guard Kevon Looney?  They officially gave up I guess

·         Ultimately, the Warriors played it perfectly in the 4^th quarter:  they saw Boston was making several poor decisions on offense and allowed them to do that.  Their offense was fine overall, but they allowed Boston to play themselves.  That said, Andrew Wiggins had an incredible game and is the reason they won that game on both ends

 

What did you think of that game?  What do you think is the bigger reason for the win, Boston’s lack of offense, Golden State’s defense, or Andrew Wiggins as a whole?  Let me know in the comments!