OAKLAND — Twenty-four thoughts from Game 1 of The Finals in which the Golden
State Warriors ran away from the Cleveland Cavaliers 113-91.
24 — Wardrobe check on LeBron James. When you’ve been here seven straight times,
you’ve got to be sure to make a grand entrance. Mission accomplished, LBJ!
23 — I don’t know about Kevin Durant getting away with the bunny hop 3-pointer
once the game starts. Not on this stage. But I give him high marks for
creativity. #bunnyhop3
22 — You can tell from afar, huh? The energy in here is real. Nervous energy on
both sides, to be fair.
21 — Careful. Master Magicians at work.
20 — Grandpa Juice at work!
… which was payback for the slip-slide baseline jam from KD
19 — Steph and KD combined 20 points, Kyrie and LeBron combined 22 points at the
end of a nice first quarter both ways.
But this Finals MVP got the last shot …
18 — KD coast-to-coast … get used to it.
And Kyrie is going to be a trick-shot Hall of Famer on the first ballot!
17 — Strange first half. Feels like Warriors should be up 20 or more. But the
Cavs are right there, even with 12 turnovers and numerous defensive gaffes.
Strange.
16 — The Cavaliers cannot survive in here tonight without a more forceful effort
from Tristan Thompson, who is not having his way with Zaza Pachulia or JaVale
McGee around the rim.
15 — Durant bothering LeBron at the rim … Steph going the other way, pull-up 3
and stomp it out …
14 — Draymond wants in on the fun, too. Dubs up big, turning Game 1 into a rout.
13 — Appreciate all the stars coming out tonight and everything. Good to know
you all are in the building.
12 —But the real star of the quarter was this guy …
11 — And nobody’s laughing at his shoes this time …
10 — Cavaliers have more turnovers (17) than assists with nine minutes to play.
I’m no chef, but that’s clearly a recipe for disaster if your aim is to steal
Game 1 on the road.
And you’re all wrong for clowning Richard Jefferson like this …
9 —Well played, Mr. McGee. Well played.
8 — Maybe KD was on to something with this bunny hop stuff in pregame.
7 — Bottom line … he’s been waiting five years to get back here and it showed.
6 — This won’t get any of us invited to the Barnes family reunion next mont, but
it’s #facts.
5 — Fan walking out of Oracle yells at us, “Hey writers, I got something for
you. Kevin Durant is too much for the Cavaliers. Write that.” Thanks for the
tip, sir. We had no idea …
4 — It’s just one game. One game. And we all remember what happened last season
with the Warriors up 3-1 in the series. But this happened tonight.
3 — Cavaliers will stew on this image for a couple of days. Warriors showed that
rest was much more beneficial to them than the risk of any rust. Just four
turnovers for the entire game in a true masterpiece of a performance.
2 — Player of the Game: KD in a tight one over Steph.
1 — Expecting a much different energy level from the Cavaliers Sunday in Game 2.
They were outworked and outclassed throughout, especially in the pivotal third
quarter. Every time they thought they were making a run, KD or Steph rose up to
snuff it out.
Sekou Smith is a veteran NBA reporter and NBA TV analyst. You can e-mail him
here, find his archive here and follow him on Twitter.
The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA, its
clubs or Turner Broadcasting.
