BBall Breakdown: How the Spurs Defend Cury

[Spurs9]

Who's gonna run them over to the point they're hurt? I don't think Pop wants to lose even Bonner.
That's ignoring the part they'd hurt someone.

I think sadly it would take more moving screens and a huge amount of flopping to even have a chance. Spurs don't do that. That's why I'm interested in GSW vs Clippers. You know CP3 will go into drama mode along with the rest of the team.

The thing about GSW is that they don't even need to be subtle to get away with it. I have serious doubts that would fly in a FIBA game, where refs are just as human. If the league indeed does this on purpose, that would be a pretty awful way to treat a sport.

Clippers and Dubs is the series I'm looking forward to. Clippers have 3 point shooting power and power downlow. They also have the defense to keep up with dubs tbh

[BillMc]

I give us a 40% chance to win that series and it would be higher except for Dubs having home court. Pop only went all out to win once against them during the RS and we won that game.

Instead of a 67 win team who went 1-3 against them, you'd think we were a 48 win team who'd been swept by the way everyone talks. Nobody has the perimeter defenders we do. If the Dubs are gonna lose to anyone, we're the team that'll beat them.

[james evans]

Clippers and Dubs is the series I'm looking forward to. Clippers have 3 point shooting power and power downlow. They also have the defense to keep up with dubs tbh

clippers are getting swept because Doc River is as dumb of a coach as they come

[spurs10]

I give us a 40% chance to win that series and it would be higher except for Dubs having home court. Pop only went all out to win once against them during the RS and we won that game.

Instead of a 67 win team who went 1-3 against them, you'd think we were a 48 win team who'd been swept by the way everyone talks. Nobody has the perimeter defenders we do. If the Dubs are gonna lose to anyone, we're the team that'll beat them.

So much will depend on our momentum. If we can get in a groove and take out OKC (presumably) in high form- we could walk into Oracle with fire in our eyes.

[K...]

clippers are getting swept because Doc River is as dumb of a coach as they come

Pop will call that er every night if he's smart

[phxspurfan]

Agreed. One of the few aspects I wish Pop were more like Phil Jackson is Jackson would make a very public issue of things like that to the media. Pop won't do that.

I was just telling an LA friend about this the other day. Remember when we would play the Lakers and every time there would be a game 3 or something when Phil would call out the refs? I wish Pop would do that.

[SouthernFried]

Prefer to look at this one series at a time.

Worry about GS, when we actually have to play GS.

[Vito Corleone]

So basically the Spurs need ridiculous levels of concentration, focus and discipline.

I've said all along the best defense against Curry is you don't.

You defend the other 4 guys and let Curry take all the shots, he will ware down by the 4th Quarter and all those ridiculous shots will stop falling. One guy in one game scored 100 pts, if we take away everyone else than you force Curry to do it all, and since he isn't superman he will get his 60 or so points but the Warriors won't win.

[florige]

Prefer to look at this one series at a time.

Worry about GS, when we actually have to play GS.

That's my thinking. We don't exactly own the Thunder the last I checked.

[james evans]

I've said all along the best defense against Curry is you don't.

You defend the other 4 guys and let Curry take all the shots, he will ware down by the 4th Quarter and all those ridiculous shots will stop falling. One guy in one game scored 100 pts, if we take away everyone else than you force Curry to do it all, and since he isn't superman he will get his 60 or so points but the Warriors won't win.

it won't wear him down if he's not playign any defense. so if he's shooting everything and killing parker or anyone else off illegal screens and Danny Greens wants to sit at the 3 point line and give him a break on defense, he won't get tired.

[BillMc]

Prefer to look at this one series at a time.

Worry about GS, when we actually have to play GS.

I agree the TEAM should and will do this. But we're just a bunch of guys on a sports forum message board. No harm in us looking ahead.

[spurs10]

I agree the TEAM should and will do this. But we're just a bunch of guys on a sports forum message board. No harm in us looking ahead.

Exactly- I'm sure they haven't given much thought to OKC at this point.

[Brian Windhorst]

The key to stopping Curry really has little do do with defense, other than the switching strategy which Pop already tried.

The way you slow down Curry, which I doubt any team will really try, is on offense. Whoever he is guarding runs through hard screens for 16-18 second, every single time down the court. If he switches on to a bigger player, that player immediately gets the ball and backs him down in the post. Every single time. If he doesn't switch, you continue to run him through hard screens for 16-18 seconds or until his man gets an open jumper. Every single time. At the 18 second mark, you give it to LMA or Kawhi for an isolation shot. He should take at least 5 hard elbows or shoulders from a big setting a legal screen every single time down the court, and have to run around those to recover. This is designed for the sole purpose of running him into the ground. This is your one play, and the rest of your offense takes place in the time after you run your play.

[DMC]

No one knows how to slow down Curry. If they did they'd be making millions instead of posting ty takes here for free.

[ezau]

The key to stopping Curry really has little do do with defense, other than the switching strategy which Pop already tried.

The way you slow down Curry, which I doubt any team will really try, is on offense. Whoever he is guarding runs through hard screens for 16-18 second, every single time down the court. If he switches on to a bigger player, that player immediately gets the ball and backs him down in the post. Every single time. If he doesn't switch, you continue to run him through hard screens for 16-18 seconds or until his man gets an open jumper. Every single time. At the 18 second mark, you give it to LMA or Kawhi for an isolation shot. He should take at least 5 hard elbows or shoulders from a big setting a legal screen every single time down the court, and have to run around those to recover. This is designed for the sole purpose of running him into the ground. This is your one play, and the rest of your offense takes place in the time after you run your play.

Very interesting take

[NameLess Scrub]

Very interesting take

Isn't that what the Lakers did to Iverson when they met in the finals.

[Kawhitstorm]

The key to stopping Curry really has little do do with defense, other than the switching strategy which Pop already tried.

The way you slow down Curry, which I doubt any team will really try, is on offense. Whoever he is guarding runs through hard screens for 16-18 second, every single time down the court. If he switches on to a bigger player, that player immediately gets the ball and backs him down in the post. Every single time. If he doesn't switch, you continue to run him through hard screens for 16-18 seconds or until his man gets an open jumper. Every single time. At the 18 second mark, you give it to LMA or Kawhi for an isolation shot. He should take at least 5 hard elbows or shoulders from a big setting a legal screen every single time down the court, and have to run around those to recover. This is designed for the sole purpose of running him into the ground. This is your one play, and the rest of your offense takes place in the time after you run your play.

Too bad he will be hiding on Danny; K-Mart could make him work on defense but where is he going to hide on defense if Tony/Patty are on the floor.

[polandprzem]

The key to stopping Curry really has little do do with defense, other than the switching strategy which Pop already tried.

The way you slow down Curry, which I doubt any team will really try, is on offense. Whoever he is guarding runs through hard screens for 16-18 second, every single time down the court. If he switches on to a bigger player, that player immediately gets the ball and backs him down in the post. Every single time. If he doesn't switch, you continue to run him through hard screens for 16-18 seconds or until his man gets an open jumper. Every single time. At the 18 second mark, you give it to LMA or Kawhi for an isolation shot. He should take at least 5 hard elbows or shoulders from a big setting a legal screen every single time down the court, and have to run around those to recover. This is designed for the sole purpose of running him into the ground. This is your one play, and the rest of your offense takes place in the time after you run your play.

Well GS is really good at switching when Curry got bigger opponent on him. Plus Curry can do some defense cause on ofense he is still not giving as much effort as others cuz of those treys. Well at least he is not working as hard as players closer to the basket in LMA or Kawhi for example

[NameLess Scrub]

So, is the best way to defend him the Beverly way?

[Chinook]

The thing I hate most about that breakdown is that Coach Nick clearly sees that the intensity of the Spurs' defense is lower in the third game than it is in the second. Yet he acts like that's something the Warriors did to counter rather than the Spurs letting their foot off the gas. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me. The change had everything to do with the Spurs and not a ton to do with the Warriors.

I think Pop is more than happy to let Curry get two-pointers. The team can keep up with those. At that point, it becomes a two-on-two with Curry and the big versus Curry's man and the Spurs big at the rim. So long as the team doesn't overhelp, that will be much easier to defend than the beautiful game that happens when you get Draymond or Iggy driving. And yeah, you can foul him -- especially when he's passing the ball -- because that will cause him to overthink his drives. Then, he'll be taking pull-ups from midrange instead of getting layups or threes, and the team will be happy as a clam if that's how GS chooses to play it.