0 comments by John Cannon on 5/28/2016
So what’s the problem? Why do I feel that the Warriors are fighting an uphill battle tonight in Oklahoma City? Home court. I’ve seen a lot of teams lose on their home floor, so I don’t look at home-court advantage as the determining factor when analyzing a matchup. Usually. This year is strange, folks. Look […]
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/27/2016
The Golden State Warriors can’t dwell on Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals. Their attention must turn to Game 6 on Saturday against the Oklahoma City Thunder. If they don’t win Game 6, the value of Game 5 will vanish. The memory of Thursday night’s win will recede into the mists of history. I’m […]
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/26/2016
The Golden State Warriors have a challenge in their Game 5 showdown with the Oklahoma City Thunder that is unique in scope. They have two huge problems that need to be solved independently of each other, meaning that solving just one won’t be enough. The Warriors, as it turns out, had an Achilles Heel. For […]
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/25/2016
Former NBA star and current TNT/NBA TV analyst Brent Barry talks about the remarkable rise of the Oklahoma City Thunder; the equally remarkable struggles of the Golden State Warriors; the coaches for whom he played; and growing up the son of an absentee NBA dad.
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – MAY 22: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors covers his face in the fourth quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder in game three of the Western Conference Finals during the 2016 NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena on May 22, 2016 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
0 comments by John Cannon
This column is mostly about Stephen Curry, but before discussing the NBA MVP, one of his teammmates illustrates why No. 30 must lead the Golden State Warriors out of a 3-1 deficit in the Western Conference Finals. An element of karma sometimes becomes a part of sports. A guy gets a foul call he doesn’t […]
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – MAY 22: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors reacts to their 133 to 105 loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder in game three of the Western Conference Finals during the 2016 NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena on May 22, 2016 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/23/2016
The Golden State Warriors are staring into the abyss. Maybe that’s a little strong, but that’s how it feels the morning after one of the most dramatic thumpings any team has absorbed in NBA playoff history. Don’t be fooled by the 28-point margin the Oklahoma City Thunder enjoyed when the buzzer sounded at the end […]
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/20/2016
Before Woj, before Marc Stein, before Marc Spears, before any of the NBA national reporters we all follow on Twitter, there was Peter Vecsey. If you’re old enough to have watched the NBA in the 1990s, you remember him as the know-everything guy on NBC’s broadcasts. Vecsey retired from the New York Post in 2011 […]
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/19/2016
After spending the second half of Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals impersonating a non-73-win basketball team, the Golden State Warriors got back to business in Game 2, running the Oklahoma City Thunder out of Oracle Arena. Now the series moves (after another three-day break, of course) to Chesapeake Energy Arena, where Game 3 […]
OAKLAND, CA – MAY 16: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors looks on during game one of the NBA Western Conference Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder at ORACLE Arena on May 16, 2016 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/17/2016
I woke last night to the sound of thunder How far off, I sat and wondered… — Bob Seger, “Night Moves” Facing the Oklahoma City Thunder in Monday’s Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, the Golden State Warriors did the opposite of this famous song from 1976, which, ironically, is the last year they lost […]
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/16/2016
Both the Golden State Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder possess the combination of great players and very good players that a team needs to win an NBA championship. The reason, in my opinion, that the Warriors have a trophy and the Thunder do not is the mental game of basketball. Unlike baseball and football, where […]
0 comments by John Cannon
With some time to reflect on the Golden State Warriors’ series against the Portland Trail Blazers, one thing kept coming back to me: Man, it’s a good thing they won that Game 5! Much has been said and written about the closeness of the series and how it didn’t feel like a 4-1 series at […]
PORTLAND, OR – MAY 9: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors celebrates after hitting a shot during overtime of Game Four of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Portland Trail Blazers during the 2016 NBA Playoffs at the Moda Center on May 9, 2016 in Portland, Oregon. The Warriors won 132-125. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images)
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/10/2016
There’s been a lot of noise about Steph Curry the past three weeks. It’s been a field day for open debate on radio and TV talk shows — Do the Golden State Warriors sit him? Do they play him, do they start him, do they need him? With no Steph to watch, the conversations started […]
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/9/2016
For a postseason that figured to have few possible outcomes, the 2016 NBA Playoffs have overturned conventional wisdom. In the first round, remember, the Golden State Warriors went from favorite to underdog and back to favorite in the space of 24 hours. Then Stephen Curry got hurt a second time and their title chances once […]
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/8/2016
Very few teams can do what the Golden State Warriors do. There are fewer still that can replicate the Warriors’ formula and use it to punish the NBA champions. Saturday night in Portland, the Trail Blazers were that team. Their defensive intensity was impressive, and it led to offensive opportunities. They made the extra pass, […]
OAKLAND, CA – MAY 03: Klay Thompson #11 and Draymond Green #23 of the Golden State Warriors celebrate in the final minute of their victory over the Portland Trail Blazers in Game Two of the Western Conference Semifinals during the 2016 NBA Playoffs on May 3, 2016 at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
0 comments by John Cannon on 5/5/2016
People are starting to notice that the Golden State Warriors are pretty good, even without Steph Curry. This takes a little getting used to, the notion that a team can lose a transcendent player and still look at times like it doesn’t even miss him. In their second-round NBA Playoffs series, the Warriors outscored Portland […]
