OAKLAND — One day after mounting a 25-point comeback in a Game 1 victory, the Warriors faced questions about Zaza Pachulia’s basketball integrity and not their rare feat against the San Antonio Spurs.
After a light practice on Monday — one where Steve Kerr was a participant — David West, Draymond Green and Mike Brown were all peppered about Pachulia’s closeout on Kawhi Leonard in the third quarter of Game 1. Leonard aggravated an ankle injury, is likely out for Game 2 and rumors are swirling he could miss the series.
The Warriors’ response? Calculated restraint. Don’t engage. Not even Draymond. It was an internal tactic to keep control. There’s a time and a place to get all fussy about what happens on the court — June in the NBA Finals. Pachulia’s accidental bump of Leonard isn’t worth the huffing and puffing. Keep the focus on basketball, right now.
Let’s present the evidence before analyzing the approach.
Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich poured gasoline on the situation Monday at San Antonio’s practice. In an epic rant, Popovich blasted Pachulia as a dirty player with a checkered history. He called the play dangerous and unsportsmanlike.
“A totally unnatural closeout that the league outlawed years ago,” Popovich said, in part. “And Kawhi’s not there. And you want to know how we feel about it? You want to know if that lessens our chances, or not? We’re playing very possibly the best team in the league.”
Surprisingly, Green politely declined to comment on the situation. It stumped reporters and he gracefully exited the hot seat in less than two minutes. West, who Popovich cited as having been involved in one of this past incidents, remained pretty indifferent.
“It is what it is,” West said. “Zaza’s my teammate. He plays hard. He’s just trying to win.”
Pachulia defended himself in the locker room Sunday night, saying, ‘it’s really stupid’ to think he’s a dirty player. The 33-year-old logged a playoff-high 26 minutes in Game 1 and was integral part in a third quarter 18-0 run. Pachulia spoke to reporters again on Monday. He was apologetic.
“No response,” Pachulia said. “I have a lot of respect for coach Pop and their organization. A lot of respect, and I mean it. No comment, no response and focus on Game 2, honestly.”
Acting head coach Mike Brown was strongest in his defense of Pachulia. Brown cited Leonard tweaking his ankle by stepping on teammate David Lee prior to the Pachulia incident. Brown also brought up a similar play from LaMarcus Aldridge the Warriors saw when watching film, a natural basketball play in his mind.
“Steph (Curry) shot the ball,” Brown said. “LaMarcus Aldridge went to contest and he went up underneath Steph. Steph avoided landing on his ankle by falling to the ground. And I even asked two of the three officials, I said, ‘Hey! That’s the same call you just called on Zaza?’ And both of them told me the difference was Kawhi landed on Zaza’s foot. Steph avoided landing on LaMarcus’ foot. That’s why they didn’t call a foul. It’s the same play.
“Zaza is not a dirty player. LaMarcus is not a dirty player. It’s a tough basketball play.”
My take: Popovich knows theatrics have to be involved for his team to have a chance without Leonard. His gamesmanship rant was about getting the referees on his side Tuesday, about trying to get inside of the Warriors’ head and about motivating his own players. Popovich is a master a human behavior and knows dropping this bomb could produce some type of benefits for his team. The Spurs have absolutely nothing to lose.
Rule No. 1: Don’t let Popovich ever bait you. I’m a fan of the way the Warriors handled this. While Twitter has been set ablaze, Draymond knows sticking his neck into the fray is not going to help this situation. Pachulia continues to be apologetic. West all but acknowledged Zaza’s past history and said the bare minimum amount to defend his teammate. Brown brought up another play — where Curry easily could’ve been hurt.
Draymond brought up an interesting point about why the Spurs were able to beat the Rockets by 40 without Leonard: They are less predictable. When Kawhi is on the court the basketball and the defense runs through him. When he’s not, the Spurs throw the kitchen sink at you. That’s why Popovich made these comments. Anything to get an edge.
The bottom line is that basketball pundits are latching onto ways to discredit the Warriors. They’ll say they play dirty. They’ll say they play opponents who have major injuries. Leonard joins Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving as star players to suffer an injury against Golden State.
This intense scrutiny comes with the territory of building a super team. The Warriors know this. They also know when to engage verbally and when not to. Monday they showed proper restraint.