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!
7 consecutive #NBAFinals appearances.
No.1 All-Time in #NBAPlayoffs points.
LeBron James arrives for Game 1. #PhantomCam pic.twitter.com/2rjaYEnuaY
— NBA (@NBA) June 2, 2017
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
Kevin Durant working on something new pregame! #NBAFinals on ABC pic.twitter.com/G0jJIW1mI6
— NBA (@NBA) June 2, 2017
22 — You can tell from afar, huh? The energy in here is real. Nervous energy on both sides, to be fair.
So much energy in Oracle right now.
— 🏁 Jamal Crawford (@JCrossover) June 2, 2017
21 — Careful. Master Magicians at work.
Steph and Kyrie's game of "anything you can do I can do better" is going to make this series infinitely more entertaining. #NBAFinals
— Sekou Smith (@SekouSmithNBA) June 2, 2017
20 — Grandpa Juice at work!
https://twitter.com/Nicktheegr8/status/870456238969991172
… which was payback for the slip-slide baseline jam from KD
https://twitter.com/hofmatchup/status/870456998906560512
19 — Steph and KD combined 20 points, Kyrie and LeBron combined 22 points at the end of a nice first quarter both ways.
Getting our money's worth from both sides. Trading haymakers early on. Rust? Nah. Rest? Did everybody some good. #NBAFinals
— Sekou Smith (@SekouSmithNBA) June 2, 2017
But this Finals MVP got the last shot …
https://twitter.com/TheFuzzNBA/status/870456765875236864
18 — KD coast-to-coast … get used to it.
KD comin' at ya coast to coast!#NBAFinals #DubNation pic.twitter.com/S9p5XPl8Z7
— NBA.com (@NBAcom) June 2, 2017
And Kyrie is going to be a trick-shot Hall of Famer on the first ballot!
How, Kyrie?#NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/4vI2YMyHp7
— NBA (@NBA) June 2, 2017
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.
Warriors missed layup count is into the high teens. One turnover. 18 more shots and up just 60-52. Cavs dodged one in first half. #NBAFinals
— Sekou Smith (@SekouSmithNBA) June 2, 2017
Warriors have missed 15 layups, but have still outscored the Cavs 42-16 in the paint. pic.twitter.com/RZ9MNqhDz3
— John Schuhmann (@johnschuhmann) June 2, 2017
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.
Cavaliers missing Tristan Thompson's usual impact on the boards. He's got TWO rebounds so far. Warriors winning there is huge. #NBAFinals
— Sekou Smith (@SekouSmithNBA) June 2, 2017
15 — Durant bothering LeBron at the rim … Steph going the other way, pull-up 3 and stomp it out …
Mood #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/ajnkNAhX2g
— Chase Shannon (@chase_shannon) June 2, 2017
14 — Draymond wants in on the fun, too. Dubs up big, turning Game 1 into a rout.
Draymond with the tough finish!@warriors have their largest lead of Game 1. #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/NG8cviAJsI
— NBA (@NBA) June 2, 2017
13 — Appreciate all the stars coming out tonight and everything. Good to know you all are in the building.
The stars is in the building ⭐ #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/ec8ZrovLFC
— Pathe Ndiaye 🥀 (@KdTrey_23) June 2, 2017
12 —But the real star of the quarter was this guy …
Steph sizzles with 14 of his 26 points in the 3rd quarter on #NBAonABC!#NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/S9QjJRLhez
— NBA (@NBA) June 2, 2017
11 — And nobody’s laughing at his shoes this time …
@StephenCurry30 and his new wheels are on 🔥 #game1 #Curry #4s #nbafinals #2017 @UAassociation @UAbasketball #SplashCity pic.twitter.com/ggcynaDbJf
— Splash City (@SplashCity_UAA) June 2, 2017
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 …
😭RT @UrfavoriteWhit: Shout out to Richard Jefferson on the D 😩 #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/MTNGbOZoax
— Miguel (@glassesgohard) June 2, 2017
9 —Well played, Mr. McGee. Well played.
At @YahooBDL: JaVale McGee showed up to Game 1 of the #NBAFinals wearing a Shaq hat, which is perfect. https://t.co/sOcNItr1zz pic.twitter.com/FT7UrDm5ZG
— Dan Devine (@YourManDevine) June 2, 2017
8 — Maybe KD was on to something with this bunny hop stuff in pregame.
Kevin Durant working on something new pregame! #NBAFinals on ABC pic.twitter.com/G0jJIW1mI6
— NBA (@NBA) June 2, 2017
7 — Bottom line … he’s been waiting five years to get back here and it showed.
That five year wait to get back to The Finals was clearly eating at Kevin Durant. Playing like he was meant for this moment. #NBAFinals
— Sekou Smith (@SekouSmithNBA) June 2, 2017
6 — This won’t get any of us invited to the Barnes family reunion next mont, but it’s #facts.
Durant has scored more than half Harrison Barnes total points in last year Finals. #NBAFinals @bomani_jones @AminESPN
— black of the class (@BlackOfDaClass) June 2, 2017
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 …
Warriors take Game 1 of the #NBAFinals, 113-91. pic.twitter.com/EivU0yVyNR
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 2, 2017
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.
Game 1 goes to GSW.@warriors stay perfect in the #NBAPlayoffs, beat @cavs 113-90 on 38/8/8 from Durant. LeBron: 28/15/8.#NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/CgvdVuvUCd
— NBA (@NBA) June 2, 2017
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.
That 1-0 feelin' 🔥 #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/CVmgg1wM9q
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) June 2, 2017
2 — Player of the Game: KD in a tight one over Steph.
.@KDTrey5 goes off for a game-high 38 points as @warriors roll past Cleveland in Game 1 to remain undefeated in the #NBAPlayoffs! #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/8apjuZBmcw
— NBA TV (@NBATV) June 2, 2017
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.
https://twitter.com/sprtsPOSTS/status/870486043442659328
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.
