No Durant. No problem for the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors head into Portland with a comfortable 2-0 series lead as this team continues to remind us why they are the champions. Kevin Durant will continue to be re-evaluated for his calf while missing the next two games, that will be in Portland. However, if Curry, Thompson, and Green continue to play like they are, then this team will have no problem potentially closing out the series.
Damian Lillard, to me, hasn’t had that big game yet in this series. The first game, he shot 4/12 and finished with only 19 points. That will not get the job done when you are playing the Warriors. Game 2, he shot 6/16 from the field and finished with 23 points. Also, to mention, he was blocked in the final seconds by Andre Iguodala allowing the Warriors to escape with a win.
Steph Curry in 2 games.
73 points, 15 assists and 14 rebounds.Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum in 2 games.
81 points, 22 assists and 15 rebounds.Stop the debate on the best backcourt.
Steph is beating them by himself.— Ahmad Hicks (@AhmadHicksTV) May 17, 2019
Lillard needs to play better. He needs to have one or maybe even two of those games where he just goes off and potentially scores 40 plus points. He did it in the first round of the NBA Playoffs against OKC in the final game of that series, dropping 50 points.
C.J McCollum also has been struggling in this series. Game 1, he shot 7/19 from the field and only finished with 17 points. Game 2, 9/23 from field and finished with 22 points. McCollum had arguably one of the best game sevens in NBA history against the Denver Nuggets, but as for right now, that production has not transferred over to this series.
Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum were impossibly awful down the stretch. More @Undisputed now on FS1 https://t.co/T3trWa7Jc8
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) May 17, 2019
This series against the Warriors could be a career defining for Lillard and McCollum. They have expressed that they love playing in Portland and have no desire to leave. However, if they can’t better compete against the defending champs, it will make people question their ability to play against the best. I believe they are one of the best back courts in the NBA. They need to pick up their play in this series for them to establish that they are the real deal. The series resumes tonight in Portland as the Blazers look to cut into the Warriors series lead in half.
–Zachary Connell (@ZackConnell2)