Finally, a week later, the 2015 NBA Finals gets underway in Oakland tonight as LeBron James and Steph Curry go head to head.
By Robby Sabo
Please, for the love of everything good in this world, don’t mess with me.
It’s been eight long days since the boys of The Association have treated us to world class basketball. Eight days since the Golden State Warriors finished off James Harden and the Houston Rockets, 104-90, in Game 5.
Over a week without ball, yet it is finally, just now, about to go down.
We know all the storylines (god knows we’ve had enough time to digest it all). LeBron James comes into the biggest stage for his fifth-straight season. He’s been beyond great, seemingly pushing his rag-tag group of misfits and clowns (here’s looking at you J.R. Smith) on the brink of greatness. Doing it, even, without a real head coach.
The detractors will surely bring up the disparity between the East and West. In any event, LeBron is up against it now.
Reigning MVP Steph Curry and his 67-win Warriors squad is not only more talented than the Cavs, they’re absolutely thrilling and dynamic. Paired with Klay Thompason, Curry enters the NBA Finals as the sure fire favorite to take home his first NBA Championship.
Ah, but this is why they play the game.
There’s a reason James has now entered a new level of greatness. It’s because of the outrageous thought that these Cleveland Cavaliers are already on the doorstep of the city’s first championship since the 1964 Browns. That, and the fact he no longer has Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh by his side anymore.
It seems these finals are now being pegged as the “great team” against the “great player who elevates everybody around him to unseen levels.”
Before you hop on the bandwagon and favor the “great team,” I’ll use the next few minutes of your life explaining why that might not be the best idea.
Here are 5 reasons LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers will win the 2015 NBA Finals in six games:
5. Iman Shumpert’s Perimeter Defense
To start the game, the Cavs will find themselves in a conundrum. When thinking about how to defend the Splash Brothers, there’s only one way Cleveland can match up.
LeBron will be forced to stay with Harrison Barnes. This means Kyrie Irving will have to stick with Curry and J.R. Smith will be pitted up against Curry.
This scenario favors Golden State considerably.
Enter Iman Shumpert.
There’s no question that Shumpert will be a critical factor over the next two weeks. Aside from LeBron, Shumpert is the best perimeter defender in the series. When he’s inserted into the lineup, the Cavs will allow him to shut down Thompson.
This leaves Irving on Curry with LeBron roaming the floor and challenging Barnes to hit open jumpers and make timely backcuts.
Only during the absolute critical of times will James directly guard Curry. It’ll happen, but due to the lack of matchup opportunities for David Blatt, it’ll be very seldom.
Steve Kerr will actually be forced to not go small at the 3-spot because he won’t want to give LeBron the opportunity to matchup with the reigning MVP. So, when Andre Iguodala is on the floor with Curry and Thompson, J.R. Smith, or even Irving, can slide over and guard the small forward spot. Irving might be stretch, but Smith is absolutely feasible.
The more Shumpert and LeBron can be two-on-two with the Splash Brothers, the better off Cleveland will be.
4. Experience
If there’s one negative that the Warriors have been labeled with during these playoffs, it’s that they haven’t finished off games.
Remember Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals?
Golden State enjoyed a lofty 17-point lead in the game which included a nine point cushion with only 2:25 left in regulation. By the time we got to crunch-time, it took a James Harden turnover as time expired for the Warriors to prevail by just a single point.
It’s completely in the realm of possibility that Golden State feels a little wet behind the ears on Thursday night in Game 1. While talented, the Warriors have never been here before.
Although, the same can be said for the entire Cavs team aside from LeBron, this is the NBA, where superstars are the team. James isn’t just their best player. He’s their coach, leader, heart and spirit right down to the core.
His NBA Finals experience will sprinkled up and down that locker room.
3. Cavs’ Roles Are Clearly Defined
One of the more crucial aspects of any championship team comes when the team is actually formed.
First, there are the superstars.
These guys are obvious and seldom. For Cleveland, there are two: LeBron and Irving. Although, it could easily be stated that there is only one at the current moment with Irving’s nagging injury concerns.
After that comes fitting in the pieces around those guys. This is something the New York Knicks have never been able to do as it relates to Carmelo Anthony.
Admittedly, it’s a ton easier to fit guys around James because of the way he adapts his environment, the way the rotation is clicking at this moment seems flawless.
Shumpert and Smith have provided studly perimeter defense and secondary scoring. Anthony Mozgov has given the Cavs a talented presence on the block. Tristan Thompson – who remains their most underrated player – is the heart and glue of the squad.
Thompson’s garbage work in and around the bucket means more to this group than anything any other role player showcases on a nightly basis. He and Timofey Mozgov will have a field day against a very average rebounding team in the Warriors.
Thompson knows what his role is, and is happy to give 100 percent.
2. Greatness Will Not Be Denied
27.6 points, 8.3 assists and 10.4 rebounds per game doesn’t just come by chance. These all-around stats come in the form of greatness.
LeBron James’ greatness has been on full display since the postseason started. Evidence of this is plentiful. Not only has he loaded the box-score in all areas, he’s adjusted his game on a minute by minute basis depending on what his team needed at the current moment.
Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Chicago Bulls is brilliant example.
When head coach David Blatt called an out of bounds play for LeBron to be the inbounder, he waived it off, knowing he had to be the guy who took that ultra critical shot with his team down 2-1 in the series.
Furthermore, James’ field goal percentage during the postseason had dipped. After shooting .488 from the field during the regular season, James is now sporting a clip of .428.
The reason is solely due to him realizing he needed to be much more of a point getter than distributor.
Everybody knows LeBron is a “pass-first” baller. During these playoffs, and especially after the Kevin Love injury, he understood that mentality had to change to “shoot first” if his team had any chance of getting to this point.
It amazingly still doesn’t stop him from continuing his brilliance as a distributor, but now his team is better off for the change in mentality.
1. It’s Finally Cleveland’s Time
1964.
It’s that simple for the city of Cleveland. Not since Jim Brown and Frank Ryan led the Cleveland Browns to the 1964 NFL Championship has this city seen a professional sports championship.
The heartbreak includes a plethora of bad memories you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy. John Elway did it to them with “The Drive.” Earnest Byner provided some self-inflicted wounds with “The Fumble.” Michael Jordan sent Craig Ehlo down to the ground in agony with “The Shot.”
Their hero and chosen one even left them at the alter in 2010 for South Beach. It’s been one disaster after another for this very proud and fantastic sports town.
The light at the end of the tunnel has finally arrived, and for this starving city only an NBA Championship will suffice.
Perhaps this is exactly the plan the basketball gods drew up when LeBron was dubbed The King early on in his career. Maybe the pain of being obliterated in 2007 against Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs was just the precursor needed to make 2015 just that much sweeter.
Despite all the uncertainty surrounding the outcome of the 2015 NBA Finals, there is one thing we all know for sure.
If or when Game 6 rolls around and the Cavs are up 3-2 in the series, this starving city of Cleveland will be busting at the seams in anticipation to celebrate. It’ll be must watch TV and one of the better sights sports fans across the world will have watched in a very long time.
The basketball gods will have finally written the script correctly. Taking away the greatest player of this generation from that very undeserved, front-running city in Miami, and sending back to the hardcore, sports crazed city where he belongs.
It is meant to be this way. LeBron will lead the Cavs to a series win in six games.