“It’s a do-or-die game for us”, Cavaliers forward LeBron James said.
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It’s 10 stories tall and shows him tossing talc in the air before a game, a trademark of his all those years when he was young and hopeful as an entire city jumped on the back of his jersey.
Although it might not feel like it, the Warriors and Cavs did in fact play each in the 2015 NBA Finals, and it was a much more competitive series.
The Warriors congratulate each other during Game 2 of the 2016 NBA Finals. Not in a good way.
Last year, with the Warriors closing out the Cleveland Cavaliers, Bogut lost his starting job and didn’t even play in the final two games as his team captured the National Basketball Association championship.
Even that comes with a gold-and-blue asterisk.
The Warriors have turned off the Cavaliers’ once-gushing three-point faucet. “Last year we lost here in Game 3”.
“We can’t afford to go down 3-0, especially against this team”, he said. “So we’re going to come in and give everything that we’ve got and leave it on the floor”.
James, whose teams rallied from a 2-0 playoff deficit to beat Detroit in 2007 and to force a seventh game against Boston in 2008, ripped himself for seven turnovers in game two but vowed, “I’ll be much better and much more sound tomorrow night”.
“I watched the game as soon as I got on the bus”.
The news of Love’s absence reached the Warriors as they were conducting their shootaround at Quicken Loans Arena. “But I could see why people would bet Cleveland in Game 3”. “There’s a chance and opportunity for him to play, we’ve talked about that as a staff”. They are set up with all of the pieces that the James – I mean, the Cavs – assembled, putting together the highest payroll in the National Basketball Association, dumping Blatt in midseason and replacing him with Tyronn Lue. But we understand that it’s a business and you’re not going to be able to stop. Not anybody else. I’m not Michael. I’m not [Muhammad] Ali.
Either because he thought the run in Miami was over, or because he was compelled to make things right in Cleveland, or more likely a combination of both, LeBron said goodbye, burning bridges with Pat Riley on his way out the door.
“And what will I do if he doesn’t play?” It’s because I worked on my craft all season long and that’s the result of it. Phil’s a great coach. However, the first two games of the Finals were on the road, and now games three and four are in Cleveland.
James certainly draws a lot of attention from the Golden State defense.
Cleveland’s biggest lead in the series so far is six points.
The Cavs have lost the first two games of The Finals by a total of 48 points, and clearly need to find a way to change the momentum of the series and challenge conventional wisdom: In NBA Finals history, a team has taken a 2-0 lead 31 times.
“This is a hostile environment, for sure”, he said.
Kevin Love had five points in Game 2. The Warriors’ versatility has curtailed Cleveland’s weakside offense on those play in which James likes to throw the ball cross-court to an open player in the corner or wing.
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James reiterated his talking point of the day a few minutes after originally bringing it up Tuesday. “We’re feeling confident but we’re not getting ahead of ourselves”, Warriors star guard Stephen Curry said.”It’s a trap to think we’ve figured things out and that we have the flawless formula to beat Cleveland and they have no chance in the series”.
