In the NBA playoffs, you rarely see the side leading the big score actively changing, and generally the backward side changes the lineup to seek variables. But in this series between the Warriors and Nuggets, we saw this magical scene.
Before the Start of the Warriors and Nuggets G5, although Kerr never admitted that Curry would return to the starting lineup, the world already knew that Curry was coming back, and Poole would not return to the bench, and the Warriors would send Curry, Klay, Poole, Wiggins and Dream's new version of the Death Five Starters.
I have to say that the Warriors have some contempt for the Nuggets, Curry returned to the starting line-up, but Poole is still in the starting lineup, the Warriors began to sacrifice a new version of the death of the five small lineup, it is inevitable that some do not take the Nuggets too seriously.
The Warriors have the capital of the Death Five, and this new version of the Death Five played a total of 32 minutes in this year's playoffs, with a plus-minus of +26 points and a net win of 34.4 points per 100 rounds. But in the last game, the set of five only scored 8 points, because there were too many fouls in the dream.
So as soon as the opening 20 seconds of today, Gordon caused the first foul of chasing dreams. The Nuggets played until the fifth game and finally figured it out, no longer betting with the Warriors on the feel of the outside line, that is, to kill your basket, this is the most direct way to crack the death of the five small.
So after the opening three and a half minutes, Kerr replaced Poole with Rooney, announcing that the plan to kill the Nuggets at the beginning was bankrupt. The two sides drew in the first half, and the Nuggets relied on Gordon's uninterrupted impact, and relied on Jokic and Cousins' excellent hand today.
In the second half, the Warriors sent a starting point or a death five small, and soon the Nuggets pulled the point difference to 10 points, so Kerr's stubbornness was once again broken by the Nuggets, and the Nuggets' three points today, although inaccurate, played the advantage under the basket to the fullest.
But the Warriors are the Warriors after all, and after falling behind by ten points, KuriBang hit two consecutive three-pointers to stop the Nuggets. After the timeout came back, Curry once again faced Cousins to shoot a three-pointer, so the Nuggets' biggest victory in this game was extinguished by Curry.
The Warriors' solution to Jokic's dominance under the basket is to consume Jokic on the offensive end, they caused Jokic four fouls in the third quarter, and the fourth save Kiki just came up and was fouled by Curry, and the five fouls could only be played again.
The Warriors' closing lineup was Curry, Payton Jr. and Porter, and in the end Porter was replaced by Wiggins, and in the end, Poole was not brought back. It can only mean that this new version of the Warriors' death five is small, at least it does not work well for the Nuggets.
Payton Jr. responded to Kerr's trust, scoring two three-pointers for a converted layup in the fourth quarter, and eight points were critical. When Payton Jr. can shoot three points, his role in this lineup is really bigger than Poole.
When the Warriors rebounded, they held the lead to the end. Jokic showed himself again in the final minutes as the league's best player to play key balls, and his unparalleled feel was always amazing.
Today he also suffered a slight leg injury, but still had 30 points, 19 rebounds and 8 assists. Just looking at the few points in the last quarter, he still deserves this year's MVP, and he and Embiid are worth it.
Today not only Jokic was injured, but Hyland was also injured, and Rivers Jr. only played for 4 minutes before he was injured. But the Nuggets still fought the Warriors for a whole game, and they gained more respect when they were eliminated than when they were 0-3.
It was Curry who finally killed the game, bypassing the two people's bags, facing Jokic's layup, and officially announcing his return.
It's been two years since the Warriors left the playoffs and two years after Curry left the playoffs. Now they're back and winning the chase center's first series, and the playoff journey has only just begun.