During a 19-second sliver early in the fourth quarter of Game Two of the NBA Finals on Sunday night, Stephen Curry missed a layup in traffic and then, after a Golden State offensive rebound, saw another layup attempt blocked by Larry Nance Jr.
That left Curry 6-for-20 from the floor, on a night when few of his teammates had had trouble getting untracked (least of all surprise starter JaVale McGee and backup guard Shaun Livingston, who combined to go 11-for-11).
Moments later LeBron James nailed a 3-pointer, shrinking the Dubs’ lead over the Cavaliers to 90-83 with 11:04 left.
That Curry exploded after that — that he nailed five of his last six shots, all of them 3-pointers, each seemingly more ridiculous than the one before — long ago stopped being a surprise. There is nonetheless something special about a little man doing little-man things, something that seems to energize the crowd in a way nothing else can.
(From afar, I’ve always likened Curry’s impact on the Oracle fans to that which Allen Iverson had on the paying customers in Philadelphia years ago. Matt Steinmetz, a Bay Area media guy and former Franklin & Marshall standout, tells me that’s not true, that they react more to the team’s exquisite brand of ball. Fair enough, but they sure seem to love them some Steph out there.)
His back-breaker Sunday came with 7:54 left, when he found himself isolated against Kevin Love on the left wing — just the sort of little-on-big matchup the Dubs are looking to create, and exploit. Curry tried a move, fumbled the ball, retrieved it well beyond the arc and with the shot clock melting away fired an off-balance shot.
Bottom.
That made it 103-89. The final was 122-103, putting Golden State up 2-0 in the series.
The Dubs did a lot of things right in this one. They shot 57.3 percent against the Cavs’ suspect defense. Kevin Durant, after a so-so Game One, scored 26 points on 14 shots, Klay Thompson 20 on 13, despite a bum ankle.
Golden State also defended LeBron better than his numbers (29 points, 13 assists, nine rebounds) might indicate. Durant and Draymond Green did most of the heavy lifting, and the Warriors got up into James, rather than letting him gather steam for one of his patented bull rushes to the hoop. They even showed him a timely double-team or two, something they usually don’t do.
But the thing Golden State did best was let Curry be Curry. He finished with 33 points on 11-for-26 shooting, and his nine 3-pointers (in 17 attempts) were a Finals record.
Besides displaying the psychological impact of the 3-ball — how you supposed to guard a dude way out there? — It showed, once again, Curry’s unshakeable confidence. It is something about which even coach Steve Kerr has marveled in the past.
Six-for-20? Means nothing to him. He just keeps firing. He is the finest shooter of his generation, and well on his way to becoming the greatest of all time. He also has the Dubs two victories away from their third title in four years.
While the Cavs displayed two years ago the folly of counting one’s chickens before they hatch, it would appear their defensive issues are such that even LeBron can’t overcome them, no matter how transcendent his play. The Warriors had one great shot after another Sunday, and then Curry made a bunch that would be bad ones for anyone else.
Fun to watch. Impossible to defend.