Don Nelson Wants Warriors to Make One Adjustment: ‘I Would Think That's Pretty Obvious'

The Warriors led by 12 points with about 10:30 remaining in Game 4, but they let it slip away.

What would former Warriors head coach Don Nelson like to see Golden State do differently in Game 5?

"As they watch film, they gotta see that they're (the Rockets) overplaying all their good players," Nelson explained on KNBR 680 on Wednesday. "When that happens, you don't want to go to halfcourt to catch, and then take you three dribbles to get into your attack area.

"You want to catch and be in your attack area upon catch ... and then, when there's pressure on you a long distance from the basket, instead of shooting long -- you gotta drive that ball. You gotta create something. There's a lot of wide open layups there that we're taking advantage of when we drive."

[LISTEN: Warriors Outsiders Podcast: Fair to second-guess the roster? More Jordan Bell in Game 5?]

In the Game 3 win, the Warriors scored 56 points in the paint and took 50 shots within 14 feet of the basket (including 33 from less than five feet).

In the Game 4 loss, the Warriors scored only 36 points in the paint and took only 44 shots within 14 feet of the basket (including 27 from less than five feet).

Kevin Durant, specifically, settled for way too many outside shots.

He was 3-for-6 in the paint and 6-for-18 on all other attempts.

There was also this:

As for Klay Thompson:

"He can drive the ball as good as any of 'em when he wants to," Nelson said. "He kind of settles because he's so good at it. But when they're up into you, it's pretty easy to drive. And there's no help at the rim anymore.

"So I just would encourage the Warriors to drive a little bit more before they drive so quickly all the time ... as they watch film, they'll pick up a few things and I would think that's pretty obvious."

Nelson wants the Warriors to advance to the NBA Finals, but he's not feeling overly optimistic.

"I'm rooting big time for them but I think they gotta know they're in trouble," the three-time NBA Coach of the Year said. "Houston's gonna be very good down there and they're not gonna change their strategy. And they've already taken all the criticism from the press and all the guys on TV that they're not playing properly.

"But I think in their minds, they're playing exactly the ways they want to."

Drew Shiller is the co-host of Warriors Outsiders. Follow him on Twitter @DrewShiller

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