N.B.A. Finals Game 6 Live Updates: Golden State vs. Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics tried a novel approach to guarding the Golden State star Stephen Curry in the first four games of the N.B.A. finals. They executed what is called drop coverage — essentially, daring Curry, one of the greatest shooters in history, to shoot the ball.
The way it works is that when a Golden State player comes to set a screen for Curry, and Curry gets around it, the second defender — who was on the screener — drops back, giving Curry room to shoot the ball. The advantage is that it leaves Curry’s teammates less open. Through Game 4, Curry’s brilliance in confronting the drop coverage resulted in scoring 34.3 points a game — including a magnificent 43-point performance.
But the Celtics got what they wanted: For the most part, the other players on Golden State, such as Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, struggled to get easy looks.
But after Game 4, perhaps fearful of another 43-point explosion, the Celtics changed their coverage — more aggressively stepping up on Curry rather than dropping, to keep him from getting shots up. It worked in stifling him: He shot 7 for 22 from the field and had 16 points. He went 0 for 9 from 3.
But then came the trade off: He was able to find his teammates more easily as a result of the aggressive double teams and blitzes. Andrew Wiggins had 26 points. Green had his first productive offensive game of the series with 8 points and 6 assists. Thompson had 21 points. Curry had 8 assists, facing defensive attention he was more familiar with.
“Of course it bothers me as a shooter,” Curry said after Game 5. “You want to impact the game that way. But thankfully that’s not the only thing that you do out there on the court.”
Golden State has scored from 100 to 108 points this series. That’s not a bad outcome for the Celtics, considering how much offensive firepower Golden State has.
“Overall, it’s a solid job on him,” Celtics Coach Ime Udoka said after Game 5 of the team’s defense on Curry. He added: “I don’t know if it was our defense as much as offensive struggles that hurt us tonight.”
But Udoka has a decision to make entering Game 6 as to which one he wants to risk more: a Curry shooting barrage or a Curry passing barrage.
Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/06/16/sports/nba-finals-celtics-golden-state