Draymond sets the tone, and the aged Warriors take a step forward

You’ve probably heard the line. Old age and treachery will always overcome youth and exuberance.

A little bit of self-confession added to the mix doesn’t hurt either.

Yes, the aging Golden State Warriors have moved into the second round of the NBA playoffs, if the task was a bit more difficult than they seemed to make it.

The Warriors defeated the Houston Rockets, 103-89, in the deciding seventh game of the first round Sunday night, not so deep in the heart of Texas but deep in belief that experience and an unexpected contribution from a guy who the previous game did not have a point.

That would be Buddy Hield, who scored 33 points, and they were very needed because Houston’s zone defense stymied Steph Curry for the longest time, if not for the entire time.

The Warriors now move on to Minneapolis, where they play the Minnesota Timberwolves in the best-of-seven second round starting Tuesday.

That the Warriors made it that far was perhaps more difficult than their fans believed, especially after Golden State built a 3-1 advantage. They couldn’t lose three in a row to the Rockets, could they? No, but they came close enough.

The confession came from Draymond Green at a team meeting Saturday. According to what Warriors’ coach Steve Kerr told NBC Bay Area, Green apologized for his lack of performance and leadership in game six at Chase Center in San Francisco. 

“Draymond set the tone (Saturday night),” Kerr said of the man who is the heart of the Warriors defense and usually the key piece in their motivation. “He said I have to be poised and I have to be better.” 

Which he was. And which the Warriors were. Draymond, in what some would think is a role reversal, scored two quick baskets for the Warriors—yes, Green can shoot as well as defend—and the younger, less experienced Rockets never caught up.

One of the reasons is that while Houston made life and mobility for Steph Curry difficult, Buddy Hield, a man not afraid to fire up shots, was making baskets. Hield had seventeen in the first half and had thirty-three for the game. Curry had only six points before halftime, but when Houston loosened that defense to try to get its own men open, Steph had sixteen more in the second half for a total of twenty-two. Green finished with sixteen points.

“Can’t say enough for these guys,” Kerr added. “I was very impressed. It was always matchup-based. If you can find a player or two, Houston did a great job of taking away the pick and roll.”

“Curry was fantastic. That’s the reason we had a twelve-point lead at the half.”

The thirty-seven-year-old Curry is more than a man who can score points. He understands the subtleties and demands of the sport. He can make passes as well as make field goals. He can defend, and he can find the little openings that a younger player might not be able to find.

Another veteran who, as hoped and expected, provided stability and also twenty points was Jimmy Butler. He was very necessary against the zone that forced the Warriors, who would prefer to run, to play the Rockets’ more deliberate style.

Through the seasons, four of them ending in NBA titles, the Warriors have been through a great deal, learning how to respond, and maybe most importantly, when the situation is tough, knowing how to win.

They took the first step in the playoffs, which the Lakers and LeBron James, and the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard, were unable to do. Those old guys were delightfully successful and pretty exuberant for their age.