Game Preview: Warriors v Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers travel to Oakland to play the Golden State Warriors in
Game 1 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena on Thursday. The Cavaliers appeared to
be heavy underdogs to get to this point, as they finished fourth in the Eastern
Conference and showed very little in the regular season. It’s hard to look at
anyone but LeBron James for the success, as he’s carried this team on his back.
In fact, James is averaging 34 points, 9.2 rebounds, 8.8 assists, 1.4 steals and
1.1 blocks per game on 54 percent shooting in these playoffs. That scoring
average has earned him an NBA record for most points scored headed into the
Finals, as he continues to rewrite the record books. He’s going to need more
help going into this series though, as James alone is not enough to beat this
potent Golden State bunch. The good news is that Kevin Love’s return is right
around the corner, as he comes into this matchup questionable with a concussion.
That’s 20 points and 10 rebounds that the Cavaliers desperately need, as no
other player has averaged double figures in scoring in this postseason. If
that’s the case in these Finals, Cleveland would be lucky to get to five games
against Golden State. The Warriors may have overlooked the Rockets in their
previous round, but they still advanced to their fourth-straight Finals. What’s
really scary about this Warriors team is the fact that they’ve yet to play their
best ball in these playoffs, as this matchup against the Cavaliers may be their
easiest one thus far. Facing Houston, New Orleans and San Antonio is murderer’s
row for many teams and it has the Warriors prepared for this big moment. The
only real question mark is if they’ll get their offense going, as they’ve scored
105 or fewer points in four of their last six games. That’s an uncommon trend
from an offense like this and it’s a wonder if they’re still figuring out how to
re-gel with all of the injuries they suffered in the regular season. Those
injuries have crept up here too, as Andre Iguodala will miss this game due to a
knee issue. Iguodala is famous for his patented defense on King James in recent
Finals appearances and many wonder who will cover him with the veteran out. Many
people are discussing the potential of a Kevin Durant-LeBron James matchup and
that would be quite the treat for NBA fans if that comes to fruition. With all
that said, Golden State comes into this series as a monster favorite to capture
their third title in four years, as oddsmakers and fans give the Cavaliers very
little chance to succeed. That’s why Durant joined this team and became a
villain though, as he’ll be the one laughing if he gets another title under his
belt. This is the fourth consecutive season in which these teams have met in the
Finals, as Golden State won last year in dominating 4-1 fashion. In addition,
these teams have traded off Finals wins, as the Warriors won in 2017 and 2015
while Cleveland took down the 2016 Finals in that epic 3-1 comeback.