The Warriors threw an array of different defensive schemes at Luka Doncic in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, and it worked.
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The Golden State Warriors kept Luka Doncic on his toes during Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on Wednesday by throwing a slew of different defensive coverages at him.
Among them was a box-and-1 defense, a scheme where four players defend a zone while one player shadows an opponent.
It's an elementary type of defense that occasionally pops up in NBA games, but not often.
It's also one Stephen Curry has faced before. In the 2019 Finals, the Toronto Raptors used it to some success against Curry — a surprise adjustment few could have predicted. Curry seemingly mocked the use of it during that series, calling it "janky."
That hasn't stopped the Warriors from using it since, however. The Warriors broke it out in a November game against the Atlanta Hawks, and Curry said he "loved" it, praising the strategy while also calling it a "gimmick."
So, the Warriors went back to it against Doncic. The combination of different looks seemingly worked, as Doncic scored 21 points on just 6-of-18 shooting, and the Warriors blew out the Mavericks, 112-87.
It's not as if the box-and-1, specifically, threw off Doncic, but the Warriors' array of different schemes kept Doncic from getting a rhythm.
"You can't do the same thing with Doncic every possession," Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said after the game. "You have to be able to mix it up. He's too good, and so we tried to do some of that."
After the game, Doncic said he had seen the box-and-1 in a game against the Charlotte Hornets this season, but he credited the Warriors with their tenacity on Wednesday.
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The Warriors-Mavs matchup is a battle of contrasting styles. The Warriors run an "egalitarian" offense, as Kerr has put it — a free-flowing mix of screens and cuts that allows everyone to touch the ball.
The Mavs, by contrast, have a heliocentric offense, where Doncic often controls the ball, picking out mismatches, and rearranging the floor.
In some ways, the Warriors might be best suited to defend this style — this team, after all, played LeBron James in the Finals four consecutive years. Doncic's ability to control the ball and the tempo of the game might best resemble James.
Prior to Game 1, Insider asked Kerr if the Warriors' experience with James has helped prepare their core players and coaching staff to defend Doncic.
"LeBron and Luka are similar in that they control games," Kerr said. "They go about it differently — skill level is different, athleticism is different, but I would say there's a similar dynamic that each guy is in total control.
"We played Cleveland all those years, and there's no question they put us in a lot of pick-and-roll, tried to keep Steph in pick-and-roll, tried to wear him down. So we have seen that ... I think the experience does help, but with that said, you've got to go out and do it again. It's not going to be easy."
The Warriors, frankly, made it look fairly easy in Game 1. The Mavericks shot just 11-of-48 (22%) from three-point range on Wednesday. The Warriors rotations were tight, and they kept the Mavs from attacking the paint.
It should also be noted that the Mavs missed plenty of good, open looks — the types of shots that can swing momentum.
Yet, the Warriors could also argue that they didn't get typical performances from their stars: Curry and Klay Thompson shot a combined 4-of-13 from three-point range. The Warriors led the Mavericks by as much as 30 while making only 10 three-pointers on the night.
Though Doncic praised the Warriors' experience and execution, he also blamed himself for the Mavs' loss, saying he needs to be better. Doncic said the beauty of the playoffs is that it's easy to put a loss behind him and focus on winning the next game.
The Warriors will be prepared for Game 2, but they're aware the result could be different.
"One game, we did an excellent job defensively," Kerr said. "But we are under no illusion that we've figured anything out."
