Game three is usually the deciding game in the series, and this game will probably determine the winner of series, especially when the team series is tied 1-1. Here is my summary of game three of the Western Conference Finals between the Golden State Warriors versus the Houston Rockets:
[First Half]
The Rockets are forcing the switch with Steph Curry to get him on either Harden or Paul and went directly at him for four straight possessions, and on the 6th possession, they attacked him again. Ariza played a massive role in the opening minutes, having two layups and an assist to Capela on the slip screen to the dump down underneath. Again, my keys in this series are how the wings/role players for both teams play, and in the first quarter, the Rockets had a clear advantage. The Warriors come out of the timeout firing on all cylinders. Curry came out with two fantastic defensive possessions with a strip on Harden on the layup and a nice contest on an Ariza three. Steph really forced the issue out of the timeout with tough drives to the lane and took several jumpers while another guard, Eric Gordon is finding a way to make his presence felt. Gordon was creating off the dribble, catch and shoot, and driving hard to the basket. He had nine points in five minutes. The Warriors feel comfortable enough to keep Looney on Harden and Paul, and Gordon which he has done well in the opening minutes, blocking Gordon on a three and staying in front of Harden and Paul to force a pass back out. In the first quarter, the Rockets seemed far more interested in drawing fouls rather than running through their actions and sets. The player who most struggled was Chris Paul, he was a -12 with 0-4 shooting and two turnovers. He was not good at all and with only him out on the court the Rockets were not good at all, they need to play Harden more than they planned.
The players who played well for the Rockets last game aren't playing well now. Tucker and Paul aren't playing well at all, and the players who didn't play well for the Warriors last game are playing well like Thompson and Green. The most prominent is Draymond Green who is shutting down the paint with authority by reading what the Rockets are doing right as they make their decision. Defense isn't the only aspect in which Draymond is making an impact, he is playmaking for his teammates finding Thompson on the screens and Iguodala on the dump downs and really pushing the ball in transition, keeping the Rockets on their heels at all times. Overall, the Rockets are only down 11 at the half with terrible play by Paul and the rest of the role players, but the two other stars for Houston, Capela and Harden are playing well. The Rockets are missing a ton of shots and have shot poorly from three and the rim, they shot 26.7% for three while shooting 15 threes and they are shooting an absolutely horrendous 9/21 from the restricted area that is 42%. If the Rockets don't clean that up in the second half, they'll lose by twenty. Because the Warriors aren't shooting well either. They are shooting 22% from the three-point line, and Curry is 3-11 from the field and 1-7 from three. The game can either become close or a blowout, I don't see it ending any other way. The Rockets turned it over 20% of their possessions while the Warriors turned it over on 8% of their possessions, again, proof that this game will either end up close or a blowout.
[Second Half]
The lazy passes and misses at the basket continue to plague the Rockets, and the Warriors pounced, going on a 10-0 run with three baskets in transition and a basket and a foul to get Curry going on the first possession. The Rockets almost look disengaged while the Warriors look fully engaged. The Warriors almost seemed like to make a point to punch the Rockets in the mouth, and they did. The Rockets clawed their way back from a 20 point deficit to a 13 point one in a couple of minutes by pushing the Warriors out of their spots and getting into passing lanes while also attacking the basket. This forced a Warriors timeout, so we're a square one where we were at the beginning of the second half. The Warriors threw a punch, the Rockets countered. But the Warriors had the knockout blow.
After that timeout, the Warriors just took any sort of life the Rockets had and sucked it right out. Steph Curry was absolutely fantastic, phenomenal, extraordinary, remarkable and any other word for great. The delivered the knockout blow in the third quarter with 18 points and 7/7 from the field with a couple of ridiculous threes. The Rockets started out sloppy, and it backfired big time because it allowed Curry to get going and the Warriors to impose their will. Nearly every player with the exception of Harden and Capela was genuinely awful, and Chirs Paul is the biggest culprit. He took tough, Isolated jumpers and wasn't looking for his teammates at all. With the live ball turnovers and missed shots, it allowed the Warriors to get in transition and get the shots they want and whoever controls the fastbreak and transition aspect of the game wins the game. With the Warriors improving to the mean, and the Rockets staying where they're at with the poor shooting and turnovers, turned into a cascade of issues for the Rockets. They ran no sets and actions, and unlike last game, they weren't cutting or doing any sort of off-ball movement during the Isolation. It feels as though the Rockets have to be red-hot from the field in order to win a game, other than that, they lose. They have just enough weak links on the defensive end to be vulnerable to the Warriors. The Warriors did a great job in rotating on the defensive end, they played excellent Isolation defense, and caught fire from three. Andre Iguodala and Klay Thompson were fantastic defensively tonight, and they shouldn't be overlooked. After a 2-1 series deficit, the Rockets have a steep hill to climb.
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