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Key: Call of the West
General Manager David Griffin has always maintained that the Cavaliers are a team that feeds off adversity. As talented and accomplished as they’ve been, these Cavs are best when the chips are down.
“I don't like it,” LeBron James joked after Friday’s season-saving win at The Q. “It causes too much stress, man.”
Either way, the Wine and Gold have another tall order in 2017, facing a familiar Finals hole. But if they make history after climbing out of this one, it’ll truly be one for the ages – in any professional sport. That goal is a long ways off, but it starts on Monday night, when the Men in Black return to Oakland for Game 5 after going wire-to-wire on Friday night in Cleveland.
In Game 4, Tyronn Lue’s squad put on a record-setting offensive display – setting NBA and franchise records with 49 first quarter points and 24 three-pointers on the night. In the process, the Cavs ended Golden State’s dream of an undefeated postseason run and got themselves back in the series.
The Warriors haven’t lost a home game since March 8, but there’s no chance last year’s Game 5 isn’t on their minds – especially with LeBron and Kyrie Irving – who netted 41 points apiece in last year’s classic – coming into the contest on major rolls.
Cleveland has basically three Game 7s to win between now and next Sunday. But as J.R. Smith said after Friday’s win at The Q: “Ain’t nothin’ we ain’t seen before.”
Key: Say Uncle!
In the first three games of the series, the Warriors’ backcourt had mostly outplayed Cleveland’s. But on Friday night, that took a sharp turn.
Kyrie Irving had a solid start to the series, struggled in Game 2 (as he did in last year’s Finals) and bounced back with a 38-point outburst in Game 3 and a 40-point explosion in Game 4. (In 2016, Kyrie’s progression through the first five games was: 26 points, 10, 30, 34, 41.)
On Friday night, Irving was nearly unstoppable in the second quarter, netting 17 points in the period and finishing 15-of-27 overall, including 7-of-12 from long-range to go with seven boards and four assists. The four-time All-Star was still stinging on Thursday after missing a go-ahead three-pointer the previous evening, and he took it out on Golden State from the opening tip – playing with a ferocity reminiscent of last year’s run.
Irving’s opposite – Stephen Curry – had his worst outing of the series in Game 4, finishing with 14 points after averaging 28.7 through the first three. The Cavaliers flummoxed the two-time MVP all night, holding him to 4-for-13 shooting, including 2-of-9 from beyond the arc.
Curry did hand out 10 assists, but the Cavaliers were finally able to keep him off the boards, snagging five rebounds after piling up 23 over the previous two games.
Key: Swishin' and Dishin'
It’s been a difficult year both on and off the court for J.R. Smith. He returned from a thumb injury before the end of the regular season, but hadn’t found his rhythm in the 2017 Playoffs – netting double-figures just twice in the lead-up to the Finals.
Swish was very good on the defensive end and has drawn some of the postseason’s toughest assignments, but had attempted just 62 shots through the Cavs’ Eastern Conference run and six through the first two games of the Finals.
But things changed for J.R. when the Cavaliers came home. He got started early in both contests and stayed aggressive all night – looking again like the player from last year’s crucial Game 7 run, when he scored eight straight points to start the second half.
In Game 3, Smith was 5-of-10 from three-point range; on Friday night, he was 5-of-9, stringing together back-to-back double-figure games for the first time this postseason. And once again, he was a thorn on the defensive end, menacing both Curry and Klay Thompson.
After struggling in Game 1 and a red-hot run in Games 2 and 3 – Thompson, who’d gone 19-of-30 from the floor in the previous two contests, was 4-of-11 in Game 4.
Kyrie kept Thompson busy on the defensive end and if Smith is hitting his shot, that adds another dimension the Cavaliers didn’t have in the first two games of the series.
Key: Heavyweight Bout
The series officially got interesting when LeBron James and Kevin Durant – two of the greatest players of this or any generation – got into each other’s grills at midcourt during Friday’s one-sided (yet highly-contentious) battle at The Q.
Of course, And as much as they both wrote it off as two high-level guys going at it, they both know that legacies are at stake this June – and these final games will rewrite the record books.
James has been spectacular throughout the postseason and is posting yet another incredible Finals performance – averaging a triple-double in the 2017 Finals: 31.8 points on 54 percent shooting to go with 11.8 rebounds and 10.5 assists through the first four games.
On Friday night, he continued his historic ascent, passing Magic Johnson with his ninth career Finals triple-double, finishing with 31 points, 10 rebounds and a game-high 11 dimes. The Warriors haven’t figured out a way to stop the four-time MVP through the first two rounds of the title trilogy – and he just piled up 70 points over two contests before heading back to Oakland.
Against any other opponent, James’ numbers would dominate. But K.D. has been every bit as good as the King – averaging 34.3 points so far in the series. Durant did most of his damage on the strip in Friday’s affair – going 15-of-16. From the floor, the Cavs held him pretty much in check, shooting 41 percent from the field, including 2-of-9 from long-range.
Key: Stairway to Kevin
Among all the big-name, big-number performances in the 2017 Finals, Kevin Love, in a quiet sort of way, has had a very solid series.
Sidelined two years ago and bouncing back from a concussion that sidelined him for a game in last year’s Finals, Love has had some outstanding nights this year – including his 23-point effort on Friday night, going 6-of-8 from long-range, 7-of-14 from the floor overall.
In Game 1, Love grabbed a Playoff career-best 21 boards and finished with 27 points in Game 2. He came back down to Earth in Game 3 at The Q – going 1-for-9 from the floor – but Love still led Cleveland with 13 boards and both teams with six steals.
Love has found ways to contribute big and small through the first four games of the Finals, and he’s excelled in the first two games at Oracle. The Cavaliers will need a third if they hope to extend their season.
Draymond Green has had his hands full with Love, and he’s been a lightning rod again in this year’s Finals – dodging an ejection on Friday night as his squad fell for the first time in the postseason. Green’s all-around game has left a footprint on the series and he was very good again in Friday night’s Game 4 – finishing with 16 points and a game-high 14 boards. But the Cavaliers also saw that they can get under his skin.
The mercurial star was famously sidelined for Game 5 last year against Cleveland but won’t be this June. Should make for an interesting Monday night at Oracle.