Chapter 767: A Strong Draft Class
Especially in the crucial Game 3, Jaylen Brown's lack of experience and reckless play gave the referees an opening. He picked up three fouls in two quarters and had to sit, while Bogdan stepped up, hitting four threes for 16 points to fill Brown's void. He made three threes in the third quarter alone, scoring nine points and joining Curry in sounding the horn for the comeback, which they ultimately completed. In Game 2, Stotts made adjustments. Green ran short pick-and-rolls with the Trail Blazers, and whenever Lillard was trapped, he passed to Green, who handled the four-on-three situations. Green's tactical role had not diminished either. He ran pick-and-rolls with Lillard and handoffs with McCollum, using the gravity of the backcourt duo to cut to the rim and finish. Both his volume and efficiency were higher than last season. The Warriors' bench was also far weaker and needed Curry and Antetokounmpo to lead the unit on the floor before it could establish any real dominance. But Zhang Yu knew clearly that the Warriors truly were not as strong as they had been last season. They had swept the Nuggets because their lineup held an overwhelming advantage and naturally countered Denver. If the Nuggets had been replaced by another team, the Warriors might not necessarily have swept them. Cousins had been ruled out for the season for the Pelicans, but Holiday was in phenomenal form this season, especially on defense. He averaged 19+7 in the regular season, the best performance of his career. After a long while, Zhang Yu set the scouting report down on the table and said, "The only fortunate thing is that the Warriors' backcourt centerpiece is Curry. His offensive impact counts for two people. Even if the shooting guard position is