What are the best defensive matchups for the starting lineup

The best individual defensive matchups that the Cleveland Cavaliers will have against the Golden State Warriors in the 2018 NBA Finals.

The Cleveland Cavaliers will have their hands full defending the Golden State Warriors in the 2018 NBA Finals. Everyone knows that though.

The Warriors have likely amassed the most talented roster ever assembled, stocked with perennial All-Stars, multiple MVP winners, a Defensive Player of the Year candidate and an all-time great shooter.

However, the Cleveland Cavaliers have a perimeter unit stocked full of length, athleticism and a long history of success.

The story will start with Cavs point guard George Hill, whose length and ability to stay with Warriors two-time MVP Stephen Curry on the move, whether he has the ball or not, will be paramount to the team’s success.

Physical defense is the best way to guard Curry because he truly doesn’t take well to being leaned on, pulled and suffocated along the perimeter; it makes him passive. Should Hill do that and allow his length to disrupt driving opportunities and three-point attempts, Curry will have more of a struggle than people can foresee.

From there, Cavs shooting guard J.R. Smith will have a chance to have another strong showing on the defensive end.

After virtually shutting down Victor Oladipo and DeMar Derozan in the first two rounds, the Boston Celtics young wings gave him issues in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Nonetheless, atching up with Klay Thompson almost requires Smith to do just one thing: follow this dead-eye sniper anywhere he goes. With the amount of screens he’ll have to run through and running sure to transpire, Smith may not have the legs for his own jumpers. Still, slowing the microwave shooter is of the utmost importance.

After the Splash Brothers, though, the rest of the defensive matchups aren’t so clear.

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Finding out who Kevin Love, their weakest link on defense, should guard is difficult but it’s the key to deciding the rest of the matchups.

Benching Love to start the game off with the ability to guard the Warriors by switching 1-5 and relying on their activity and athleticism won’t happen.

He’s not guarding Kevin Durant, an all-time great scorer who can get his points in any way from anywhere with his 7-foot frame, silky shooting touch and ability to put the ball on the deck.

Draymond Green offers little in the way of scoring but he’s the Warriors primary facilitator (8.1 assists per game in the postseason). Both his constant motion and perimeter playmaking make it essential that an active defender remains on him. Though Love has certainly had strong defensive performances throughout the postseason and even in the 2017 NBA Finals, his defensive activity can leave a lot to be desired.

With Green starting at center and Love’s struggles to protect the paint and defend the pick-and-roll the reason Tristan Thompson has been moved to the starting lineup, this isn’t the ideal matchup for him either.

Letting him guard either Warriors forward Andre Iguodala or Kevin Looney — two low-usage players — may be the best option. While Iguodala is a threat to take it all the way to the rim, he’s not going to be able to take advantage of Love’s stiff lateral movement like Durant could; if he doesn’t get past Love on the initial move he’s likely to move the ball. Especially with a left knee injury he still hasn’t recovered from.

Looney’s biggest impact on offense is on the offensive boards (2.2 offensive rebounds per game in the postseason) and with that said, he’s the matchup that Love — who excels on the defensive glass (7.9 defensive rebounds per game in the postseason) — should defend. You kill two birds with one stone by putting your worst defensive player on their worst offensive player and putting your best defensive rebounder on their best offensive rebounder.

With Love’s matchup found, that leaves two Cavs — Tristan Thompson and LeBron James — to guard Green and Durant.

Playing Thompson on Green is best because their intensity, toughness and strength are similar while Thompson has a slight size advantage. Thompson moves his feet well enough to keep Green in front of him.

If Thompson is helping defend the paint or going for a rebound but Green finds himself alone on the perimeter, his shooting 27.7 percent from three in the postseason should allow the Cavs to feel comfortable leaving him open.

Playing James on Durant will be tiring for the King because of the offensive prowess of the latter and the need for James to dominate in every category for his team to win. It’s a lot to ask of James to guard a Finals MVP and be his team’s savior so in James taking on that responsibility, his teammates will need to be assertive and efficient on offense.

The sheer lack of perimeter shooting in the Warriors’ second unit is baffling.

When any three-man or four-man combination of Shaun Livingston, Nick Young, David West and Jordan Bell are on the floor, the Cavaliers should clog the paint and launch their own in order to close a deficit or extend a lead. With that said, somebody other than Kyle Korver needs to find his stroke from behind-the-arc.

It wouldn’t be a bad time to dust off one of these players:

Fourth-year swingman Rodney Hood, a career 36.9 percent shooter from deep who has been out of the rotation since Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Rookie point-forward Cedi Osman, who made 36.8 percent of his threes in the regular season who has been in and out of the rotation.

Veteran point guard Jose Calderon, a 41.1 percent shooter from deep who has been out of the rotation since Game 6 of the Cavaliers opening round series.

Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals tips off on Thursday, May 31st (9 ET).

*All stats gathered from www.basketball-reference.com