Curry’s turnover didn’t seem like a huge mistake at the time. “Yeah, I still think about that [turnover]”, Curry told ESPN’s Chris Haynes. Bowman recalled with a grin. It’s going to be tough, but we have to lock into what we have to do defensively, and sometimes you can play great defense and it doesn’t work.
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“He’s going to score”. It’s really that simple.
LeBron James could not offer a firm reply.
Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers reacts in the first half against the Boston Celtics during Game Five of the 2017 NBA Eastern Conference Finals.
Defence has been the question for the Cavaliers all season.
It’s not because I’m picking Golden State to win this series that starts Thursday night.
LeBron James won’t call this upcoming Finals against the Warriors his greatest challenge ever because, after all, he has already played a team with four Hall of Famers in the Finals before.
Maybe, just maybe, the Warriors are slightly ahead due mainly to the addition of Kevin Durant, the former Thunder with a thunderous amount of baskets in nearly every game that he’s fielded in. But Game 2 favorites are only 9-16-1 ATS (36 percent) the previous 26 postseasons, including a 2-7 ATS mark since 2008. Two years ago, when the Cavaliers lost Love and Irving to injuries, James carried Cleveland to a six-game Finals, but the Warriors were too much and won the title.
So good are the Warriors, who have finished with the NBA’s best record in each of the last three seasons and added four-times scoring champion Durant last offseason, that Van Gundy referred to the 2015 National Basketball Association champions as a “dynasty”.
The argument from CavsTwitter upon hearing those numbers will likely revolve around how Cleveland has clamped down on Golden State in each of the past two Finals, and that take is accurate. He was able to take fewer shots and play much more efficiently past year, averaging 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds and 8.9 assists on 49.4 percent shooting in the 2016 finals. Last year Cleveland was second in the East during the regular season in points allowed, but slipped to No. 20 this season.
Except those Warriors aren’t these Warriors.
“LeBron is going to get his points and so is Kyrie”.
Durant is the difference.
And just as James struggled in building chemistry in Miami with “Big Three” teammates Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, Durant and his new Golden State teammates had to make adjustments to maximize the contributions of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green as well.
“There are so many adjectives, but it’s his level of calmness no matter what’s going on”, James said.
“You can look at Golden State and how they’re playing, it’s pretty dominant”, Minnesota Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau said on Tuesday.
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Oakland, Calif. – Steve Kerr made a surprise appearance in front of reporters after the Warriors’ practice on Monday, filling in for his fill-in, Mike Brown, who was out with the flu.
