Golden State Dynasty
Chapter 720: You Can Win by Shooting Nothing but Threes
Scoring became incredibly easy for the Cavaliers, and they could be bold with their defensive contact as well, taking the lead with seemingly no effort. By the end of the second quarter, the Cavaliers led the Warriors 73:64, a nine-point margin that was also their largest lead of the Finals. But Zhang Yu directly snuffed out that possibility at its source, leaving the referees with no choice but to run back and forth with the players. His meaning was obvious: physical confrontation would not be allowed in this game. The Warriors could forget about exploiting their advantage on the wings to score in the Cavaliers' paint. The Warriors were restrained on defense, avoiding physical contact, while on offense they floated outside and shot, with very little body contact. Once the second quarter entered the bonus, Cavaliers players attacked whenever they got the ball, deliberately creating contact to give the referees chances to blow the whistle and send them to the free-throw line. If the Cavaliers hedged and trapped a little too aggressively, Curry passed to the screener; Klay shot as soon as he caught it; Leonard took at most two dribbles before shooting. They simply would not attack the paint, relying solely on jumpers to solve their offense. If another team played that way, they would just be handing their opponent long rebounds and transition opportunities. But with the Warriors, every three-pointer was a deadly arrow. The Cavaliers players were somewhat at a loss, unsure whether they should keep leaving Olynyk and Covington open. The Warriors' sweep of the Cavaliers in last year's Finals had already pained Silver deeply. He would never allow a second time. Yet even more frustrating for the Warriors than the free throws