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Steph Curry Reveals Defensive Game Plan Against Ja Morant
Ja Morant is off to a hot start in the Western Conference Semi-Finals, averaging 40.5 PPG in two games vs. the Golden State Warriors. While the series is 1-1, with each game being close, the Warriors will need to find a way to slow Morant down if they want to win this series. During a recent media session, Steph Curry revealed how the team is approaching their defensive game plan against Morant.
When asked specifically about the team's defensive mindset against Ja, Steph said, "There's no one recipe you wanna give, because he is that talented, that quick, explosive, obviously he can finish at the rim all different type of ways. I think we've - part of the game plan is he's shot 23 threes in the first two games, probably more than he's ever shot in his career in back-to-back games, so you kinda understand what we're trying to do."
The Warriors have certainly dared Morant to take and make threes, but the problem is that he has indeed been making them through the first two games. Knocking down 39.1% of his shots from deep so far in the series, Morant's improved shooting is a big reason why his numbers have been so great.
"When it comes down to the 4th quarter, you just wanna make it difficult, as much as possible," Curry said. "It's crazy, cuz you think about the way he's played the first two games at home, we had a four-point lead with three minutes left. I don't want anybody overreacting, he's a superstar level talent... there's gonna be numbers, but it's how you get it. And then obviously in the 4th quarter, if you can make an adjustment or two to just make it a little more difficult, then that's the learning process going through a series."
Morant's road splits have been significantly worse than his home splits so far this postseason, so perhaps a change of scenery for Games 3 and 4 can help Golden State begin to slow him down.
