6-9-17 vs. Warriors

clejgabriele

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Wrap-Up -- It is a stretch to say that after Friday night’s victory, the Cavaliers have the Warriors right where they want them. It is not a stretch to say the Cavaliers have been here before and know what to do.

The Wine &amp; Gold came out swinging on Friday night, cutting up Golden State with a record-setting first quarter and barely looking back – taking the 137-116 wire-to-wire win to avoid the sweep and send the Finals back to Oakland, trailing, 3-1, the same deficit they overcame to make NBA history and win the 2016 title.

Facing elimination on their home floor, the Wine and Gold came out of the locker room locked and loaded – hitting the Warriors with a record-setting first quarter flurry – notching 49 points on 58 shooting from the floor, hitting 7-of-12 three-pointers and making 22 trips to the stripe.

But despite the Cavaliers taking an early double-digit lead, the fireworks were only getting started.

Before the night was over, the pulsating, packed house at The Q saw LeBron James and Kevin Durant barking at one another at center court, Draymond Green nearly being tossed and (constantly being serenated) and Zaza Pachulia getting away with what looked like a shot to Iman Shumpert’s groin following a second-half scrum.

In other words: the series just got interesting.

”It causes too much stress, man. I'm stressed out,” joked James, talking about their backs against the wall bringing out the best in his team. “(We) deep doing this every year. But listen, at the end of the day we just got some resilient guys. The Warriors have championship DNA, and we do as well. We're battle-tested, they're battle-tested. And getting swept is something that you never want to have happen, especially this point. You get all the way to the Finals, you hate to get swept, lose two games on your home floor.

”So I think a lot of guys had that in their mind today, and they came out and played like it.”

Kyrie Irving was in fourth gear through the first two games of the series, but he’s been in overdrive over the last two, and after finishing with 38 in Game 3, exploded for 40 points in Friday’s night’s blowout – notching 17 points in the second quarter and finishing 15-of-27 overall, including 7-of-12 from long-range to go with seven boards and four assists.

”Every game is do-or-die, and we understand that,” said Irving. “We're ready to live in it. And it was great to see Kyle as well as Deron as well as T-Thomp just throw themselves in tonight's game and understand the importance of it. This is The Finals, man. A minute here, four minutes here, a rebound here, maybe a tech or two here, it matters. They brought it tonight. I'm super proud of those guys, of all my teammates.”

Irving was the aggressor against Steph Curry from the opening tip – and he and the Cavaliers managed the stymie the two-time MVP defensively all evening.

On the night, Golden State’s backcourt combo – which had been deadly through most of the series – were a combined 8-of-24 from the floor, including 6-of-19 from long-range. Curry finished 4-of-13 on the night, with as many field foals as turnovers. Klay Thompson, who’d gone 19-of-30 from the floor in the previous two games, was 4-of-11 on Friday and had a tough night at the office trying to contain Uncle Drew.

With another passing Finals game, LeBron continued to make history – tallying the ninth triple-double of his Finals career, finishing with 31 points, 11 assists and 10 boards and passing Magic Johnson for the most in NBA history.

James – who had a strong case for Finals MVP in 2015 and won it last year – is averaging a triple-double in this year’s best-of-seven: 31.8 points on 54 percent shooting to go with 11.8 boards and 10.8 assists per.

With his first basket of Friday’s win, he passed Michael Jordan for third-most points in NBA Finals history. With 1,204 points, he now trails only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Jerry West.

The Big Three combine for 94 points as the Wine &amp; Gold take Game 4.

Like Kyrie, the four-time MVP did most of his heavy lifting before intermission – finishing with 12 of his 31 points in the second period, going 5-of-6 from the floor, 2-of-3 from deep as the Wine and Gold went into the locker room having posted 86 points on the league’s top defensive team.

Though the Warriors can score quickly and in bunches, the Cavaliers kept them at arm’s length throughout the second half. The closest Golden State got was to within 11 early in the fourth quarter. But from the second quarter on, the Cavaliers led by double-digits the entire way.

Kevin Love had yet another solid outing in the do-or-die win – finishing with 23 points, going 7-of-14 from the floor, 6-of-8 from beyond the arc to go with a five, boards and a pair of boards.

The trio of Love, LeBron and Kyrie combined for a franchise record of 94 points by a combined trio – equaling the mark set by Hot Rod Williams, Brad Daugherty and Mark Price – the latter who was in the building with his family, drawing a huge ovation from the sold-out throng.

J.R. Smith had his second straight double-digit game for the first time in the postseason and looks to have his swagger back – opening with scoring with a triple from the corner, drilling a 30-footer during Cleveland’s second-quarter barrage and send the crowd home happy with his fifth bomb of the night with 2:59 play that put the Cavs up 18.

”J.R.'s an assassin, so take his shots,” praised Coach Lue after the win. “We talked to him about trying to make plays, like I need you to shoot the basketball and be a scorer. And he's been shooting the ball well. He's made some big shots. Defensively he's been really good, so we’ll continue to ride this wave going into Golden State on Monday.”

Tristan Thompson, who’s been frustrated with just 11 rebounds through the first three games of the series finished with 10 boards on Friday – grabbing four off the offensive glass and adding five assists in the win.

The Cavaliers set the NBA Finals record, drilling 24 three-pointers on the night.

Overall, Cleveland shot 53 percent from the floor, 53 percent from long-range. Had they done better from the stripe – where they finished 21-of-31 – Friday’s drubbing of the Dubs would’ve been that much worse.

Turning Point -- The real turning point might’ve been before Friday night’s contest even started. The Wine and Gold were all business from the moment the ball went up. And the stats and score certainly bared that out.

But a key moment occurred at the 9:39 mark of the fourth quarter, when David West’s layup cut Cleveland’s lead – as much as 24 – whittled down to just 11, 115-104.

The Cavaliers answered immediately – with Kyrie Irving scoring on the next two possessions, drilling a three-pointer and hitting a floater to put Cleveland back up 19 and Game 4 essentially on ice.

By the Numbers – 49 … points the Cavaliers posted in the first quarter, and NBA Finals and Cavaliers franchise record – and were two off the NBA Playoff record. (If LeBron James would have hit his free throws, as he pointed out in his postgame presser.) Cleveland also set a Finals and franchise mark with 86 points in the first half – outdoing Sixers’ 61 against the Lakers in 1982.

Quotable – LeBron James, when asked the difference between him in the Finals now vs. his first experience in 2007 …

”I stunk in the first Finals. I don't stink anymore..”

Up Next -- After clobbering Golden State on Friday night at The Q, the Wine and Gold go back to Cali for Game 5 set for Monday night at Oracle Arena. If the Cavaliers can stay alive, they return to what promises to be a berserk Quicken Loans Arena on Thursday night. If history repeats and the series goes the duration – Game 7 goes down on June 18, Father’s Day once again, at Oracle Arena.

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Resilient Cavs Drub Dubs, Send Series Back to Cali

clenadams

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Breaking Down The 'W' - June 9, 2017

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#CavsWarriors Game 4 Photos - June 9, 2017

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If ever the cliché of taking one game at a time made sense, it’s tonight for the Cavaliers – who are faced with an 0-3 hole in the 2017 Finals after dropping a heartbreaker in Game 3 at The Q.

The Wine and Gold made NBA history last June, becoming the first team to rally from a 3-1 deficit to win the Championship. They face an even taller order now, as no team has ever won a Playoff series (0-126) after being down, 3-0.

The Warriors are also trying to make some history on Friday night – attempting to become the first NBA team to go undefeated through an entire postseason run – winning all 15 Playoff games, 30 of their last 31 outings overall.

On Wednesday night, the Cavaliers finally reversed their third-quarter curse, outscoring Golden State by 11 points in the period and taking a seven-point edge early in the fourth. They led by six when J.R. Smith splashed home a three-pointer with 3:09 to play, but the Warriors outscored Cleveland, 11-0, over the final stretch to take the 118-113 win at The Q.

After cruising through the Eastern Conference bracket in 13 games, the Wine and Gold have to win one game to stay alive. If they can do that, they’ll head back to Oakland in the same situation as last June.

In the short time since Game 3 wrapped up, as much has been made about the time LeBron James spent on the court as he did in the two minutes when he took a break.

The four-time MVP logged nearly 46 minutes of work on Wednesday night, leading both teams with 39 points –  his 12th 30-point night of the postseason – going 15-for-27 from the floor, including 4-of-9 from long-range, adding 11 boards, a game-high nine assists, a steal and a blocked shot.

By now, most readers know that the Cavaliers were +7 with LeBron on the floor and -12 with him off it. The Cavaliers need James in the game against the Warriors’ relentless attack, but there’s also a concern that the 12-time All-Star will be gassed down the stretch. Coach Lue will have to work that delicate balance again on Friday night.

Put simply, Kevin Durant has been the best player in the series so far – punctuating that point with the clutch three-pointer that he drilled with 45 seconds to play in Game 3.

Durant has topped the 30-point mark in all three games so far – averaging 34.0 points on 56 percent shooting in the Finals.

The Cavaliers aren’t out of time in these Finals, but the clock is definitely ticking.

That being said, it was a welcome sign to see J.R. Smith shake out of his funk on Wednesday night – posting his best scoring night of the 2017 Playoffs. In Game 3, Swish finished with 16 points, going 5-of-10 from beyond the arc in the loss.

Unfortunately for the Wine and Gold, that’s been the biggest contribution by anyone outside the Big Three through the first three games of the series. Tyronn Lue maintained before the contest that he wasn’t going to make a change in his starting lineup and Smith made the move pay off.

But as good as Smith was on Wednesday night, his opposite number has taken huge leaps since struggling in the series opener.

Klay Thompson struggled mightily in Game 1 – going 3-for-16 from the floor, finishing with six points. But he’s been excellent since then – going a combined 19-for-30 from the floor – including 10-of-18 from long-range – over the past two contests.

Although he was very good in Game 1 and warmed up in the second half of Game 2, the Cavaliers were waiting for Kyrie Irving to have a breakout performance in the 2017 Finals.

They got that and more on Wednesday night – with Irving going off for 38 points, notching 16 of those in the third quarter, finishing 16-for-29 from the floor overall, adding six boards and three assists in the loss. Irving was 6-of-6 from the stripe in Game 3, but 0-of-7 from beyond the arc – including his three-point attempt with 25 seconds remaining that would’ve given Cleveland back the lead after Durant’s dagger.

On the other side of the matchup, Steph Curry has been his deadly self from the perimeter – averaging 28.7 points per, shooting 48 percent from long-range and going a perfect 19-of-19 from the stripe.

But where Curry has been surprisingly effective through the first three games is on the boards – where he’s snagged 29 boards, including 23 over his last two outings. The two-time MVP is enough of a headache on the perimeter; having to mind him in the paint has been an order the Cavaliers haven’t been up to so far.

If the Cavaliers are going to have any chance to extend the series, they’re going to need better production from their bench.

Through the first three games, Richard Jefferson has been the most consistent contributor – combining for 16 points through the first two before struggling in 15 minutes of work on Wednesday.

Kyle Korver has tallied eight points in each of the last two games of the series, but he hasn’t found his stroke from deep yet in the series – going 3-of-12 from long-range in his first Finals appearance. His fellow Finals neophyte – Deron Williams – has had an even more difficult time, going scoreless on 0-11 shooting through the first three games.

Iman Shumpert has been solid on the defensive end but hasn’t contributed much in the way of scoring and Channing Frye has seen just 11 minutes in the series so far.

For Golden State, it’s been the usual suspects – Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston – doing the majority of the damage without having to put up monster numbers. JeVale McGee has been solid in spurts and David West is still a physical presence in the low-block.

keybank-five-keys-cavaliers-vs-warriors-game-4

KeyBank Five Keys: Cavaliers vs. Warriors, Game 4

After a Heartbreaking Loss in Game 3, the Cavs Know It's Do-or-Die on Friday

by Joe Gabriele (@CavsJoeG)
6/8/17 | Cavs.com

The day after a stinging defeat in Game 3 at The Q, the Cavaliers know that their margin of error is now nil and have to be wondering if their best is going to be good enough.

What the Cavaliers had done to Eastern Conference foes through the first three rounds of the 2017 Playoffs is being done to them by Golden State.

In Game 1, Cleveland held the Warriors to 43 percent shooting and lost by 22. In Game 2, they forced 20 turnovers and Golden State scored 132 points. In Wednesday night’s loss, LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and J.R. Smith combined for 93 points and the Cavaliers led by six points with three minutes to play.

LeBron James said pointedly before the series began that the biggest difference between the back-to-back Finals meetings of the past and this year’s matchup is Kevin Durant. That looks like the understatement of the NBA season – with K.D. averaging 34.0 points on 56 percent shooting through the series’ first three games.

On Thursday, James was asked if it was “fair” that the Warriors – who won 73 games one season ago – were able to add a former NBA MVP to their already-stocked roster.

”I'm not one to judge and say if it's fair or not if guys are adding players to their team,” said James. “Is it fair that the New York Yankees in the '90s were adding piece after piece after piece after piece? Is it fair that the Cowboys added Deion Sanders? It happens. It's sports. You have an opportunity to sign one of the best players, and you can do it, go ahead and do it. Why not? If I become an owner, I'm going to try to sign everybody.”

LeBron posted another herculean Finals performance on Wednesday night – finishing with 39 points, his 12th 30-point game of the postseason, going 15-for-27 from the floor, including 4-of-9 from long-range, adding 11 boards and a game-high nine assists.

As impressive as LeBron’s numbers were on the floor, it was the two minutes that the four-time MVP didn’t play that might’ve been the most telling.

Coach Lue talks to J.R. Smith during the game against the Golden State Warriors in Game Three of the 2017 NBA Finals on June 7, 2017 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.
Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images

Put simply, in the 46 minutes that LeBron was on the floor, the Cavaliers were a +7, and they lost by five.

Kevin Love was outstanding through the first two games of the series – snagging 21 boards in Game 1 and notching 27 points in Game 2. Kyrie Irving was good in Game 1 and excellent in Game 3 on Wednesday night – netting 16 of his 38 points in the third quarter, finishing 16-for-29 from the floor overall.

As great as Irving was in the last-second loss, the step-back three-point miss with 26 ticks to play – following the Kevin Durant bomb that gave Golden State back the lead – was obviously still weighing on him.

”When it's a do-or-die game like Game 3, you want to make that play – not only for your team, but just for your confidence,” said the four-time All-Star. “I'm always constantly unwavering with my confidence, but that's the type of shot you want to nail. After the game, it hurt. You feel like you let your teammates down because you didn't necessarily make the right decision. It didn't go in, so yeah.”

J.R. Smith had his best game of the 2017 postseason on Wednesday – finishing with 16 points, going 5-of-10 from beyond the arc. Unfortunately, that’s been the biggest contribution anyone outside the Big Three has made through the first three games of the series.

And that’s been one of the major reasons Cleveland finds itself down, 0-3, in the series. It takes a perfect game with contributions across the board to beat a loaded squad like the Warriors. And the Big Three hasn’t gotten much help so far.

The Warriors have essentially taken Tristan Thompson – who’d been a thorn in their side throughout the previous two Finals – out of the third act of the trilogy. He’s 4-of-11 from the floor in the series with 11 combined rebounds.

”We're not going to give in, we're going to keep competing.”

Meanwhile, Warriors players who struggled early in the series are on an upward trajectory – most noteworthy Klay Thompson, who bounced back from a 3-for-16 shooting performance in Game 1 to go a combined 19-for-30 over the past two contests. On Wednesday night, he finished with 30 points, canning six triples in the process.

As dire as things look at the moment – with NBA teams going 0-126 in a Playoff series after trailing, 3-0 – the Wine &amp; Gold aren’t out of it yet. One win on Friday night puts them in the same position they were heading back to Oakland a year ago. And they did something no other team had done up until that point.

But it all starts with one win on Friday night.

”We're not going to give in, we're going to keep competing,” said Coach Tyronn Lue. “We had a chance to win last night, and if we come out with the fight and intensity that we played with last game, clean up a few mistakes, then we have a chance to win on Friday. So by no means are we giving in. We're going to be ready to play on Friday.”

After falling in Game 4 last year at The Q to fall behind, 1-3, in the series, Lue famously told his squad: “If you don’t think we can win it, don’t get on the plane.”

If they’re able to get a victory in Game 4, his troops will know better this time.

gearing-up-for-game-4

Gearing Up for Game 4

The Cavaliers host the Golden State Warriors in Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Friday night at Quicken Loans Arena. Tipoff is at 9:00 p.m. (ET).

The Wine &amp; Gold aim to bounce back after falling down 3-0 in the series with Wednesday's 118-113 defeat.

CAVS TO DON WHITE JERSEYS.
        From where to catch all the action to Friday's game notes, Cavs.com has you covered.

In the loss, the Cavs lead 113-107 with 3:09 remaining but the Warriors ended the game on an 11-0 run to steal the victory.

Despite the loss, Cleveland poured in 113 points, marking the 15th time this postseason they have eclipsed the 100-point mark. In addition, the Cavs have now scored 110 or more points in 11 contests this postseason and are averaging a franchise record 114.7 points.

Defensively in Game 3, Cleveland forced Golden State into 18 turnovers, scoring 22 points off of those miscues. The Cavs also finished with nine steals.

The trio of LeBron James (39), Kyrie Irving (38) and J.R. Smith (16) combined to score 93 points in Wednesday’s game, which is tied for the 2nd highest scoring output by three teammates in Cavaliers postseason history. Cleveland has also seen a trio of teammates score 93 points in a playoff game this postseason (Irving – 42, James – 34, Love – 17, combined for 93 points on 5/23/17 vs. BOS). The team playoff record for points by a trio is 94 on 4/23/92 at NJN (B. Daugherty – 40, M. Price – 35, J. Williams – 19).

The Wine &amp; Gold will look to build upon the positives as they aim to force a Game 5 and feed off their home crowd.

Including this postseason at home (5-2), the Cavs have won 14 of the last 17 playoff games at Quicken Loans Arena.

For live in-game updates, follow @cavs, @CavsJoeG, @CavsFredMcLeod, @MrCavalier34, @CavsJMike, @ElalcaldeRafa and @chones22 on Twitter.

Status Update: (Cavs) - Edy Tavares (Right Hand Fracture, Out)

Status Update: (Warriors) - None to Report

In Game 3, LeBron James registered his 8th double-double of the 2017 postseason (95th of postseason career) with a game-high 39 points (27 in 1st H) on 15-27 (.556) shooting, 11 rebounds, a team-high nine assists, a steal and a block in 46 minutes. James has now scored 25 or more points in a playoff game 13 times in his career. In the series, he is averaging a triple-double with 32.0 points on .554 (35-65) shooting, 12.3 rebounds, 10.3 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.3 blocks in 41.7 minutes.

On Wednesday, James moved past Sam Mitchell (1,143 PTS) for 6th place, Bill Russell (1,151 PTS) for 5th place and Elgin Baylor (1,161 PTS) for 4th place on the NBA Finals all-time scoring list. He also passed Bill Russell (315 AST) for the 3rd most assists in NBA Finals history and now trails only Bob Cousy (400) and Magic Johnson (584).

Kyrie Irving finished with 38 points (21 in 2nd H) on 16-29 shooting (.552), a 2017 postseason-high six rebounds and three assists in 44 minutes in Game 3. It was the 3rd time this postseason that Irving had scored at least 35 points and 4th time in his playoff career.

In Game 3, J.R. Smith tallied a 2017 Playoff-high 16 points, going a 2017 postseason-best 5-10 (.500) on three-pointers in 34 minutes. Smith has now reached double figures and drained at least four treys in three games this playoffs.

Kevin Love pulled down a game-high tying 13 rebounds, to go along with nine points and a career-high (regular season and postseason) six steals in 37 minutes in Game 3 on Wednesday. He was one steal shy of a Finals single-game record (seven by Houston’s Robert Horry at Orlando, June 9, 1995; Game Two). In the 2017 NBA Finals, Love is averaging 13.7 rebounds, which is his highest in any postseason series in his career.

If the Cavs are able to get a win on Friday, they leave the next day for California – where Game 5 is set for Monday night in Oakland. If Cleveland can continue from there, Game 6 is slated for next Thursday night at The Q. If the series goes to a Game 7, that’ll be played on June 18 back at Oracle Arena.FIND SEATS | SCHEDULE

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#CavsWarriors Game 4 Preview - June 9, 2017

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6‑9‑17 vs. Warriors