NBA Finals

[skip-zip]

I thought this wouldn't be worth talking about, until last night.

All I've heard all season from the lingering LeBron haters is that they need to let Irving do more, or let Love do more.

Bull.

We learned something last night. The Cavs ARE LeBron. Not LeBron and Irving. Not the "Big 3". There is no "Big 3". This isn't LeBron, Wade, and Bosh. It's LeBron and a bunch of other guys who have never even played in the playoffs until this year.

This team was the worst in the NBA over 4 years with Irving running the show, even when surrounded by a bunch of other high draft picks. Not just a bad team, but the WORST in the league. Even adding Love might have barely made them a playoff team. To the contrary, LeBron took the Cavs to a FINALS with himself and a bunch of role players in 2007.

Note to David Blatt:

Let LeBron play POINT GUARD, make the offense always run through him, and you still have a chance in the series. LeBron as the PG might even be your best option moving forward, even with a full roster next season.

Another Note to David Blatt:

Get J.R. Smith to the bench as quickly as possible when the game is on the line. I don't think I have ever seen one guy make more stupid, critical errors in such a brief stretch as I saw last night.

[Dr Z]

I would have never predicted that Dellavadova's spazmatic defense would frustrate the league's MVP. Amazing to me that his defense matchup ability on Curry is actually outweighing his other flaws.

Not sure what's up with the audio, maybe copyright issues, but this was on before the game last night.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtNKNn6QUmk

Better audio at Hulu.

[skip-zip]

Dr. Z.... I agree about Dellvidova. He looks like that guy at the end of every basketball bench. When the coach waives him in, he gets all excited and runs out there and starts running at offensive players waving his arms all over the place. Somehow, it worked last night.

Cleveland got the perfect recipe last night. Only one key Golden State player was scoring (although Curry still had 19). I don't know if they have a chance of holding them to 87 points in regulation any more times in this series, but that's what it will take.

But for one night, that was an exciting game to watch, and it surely reignited hope for Cavs fans.

[LZIp]

Some great hot takes so far in this thread.

If you guys have paid anything other than minimal attention during the playoffs, you'd know Delly has done a great job on whatever PG he has been matched up against. Including Rose, Teague, and now Curry. What he did last night was nothing out of the ordinary.

[skip-zip]

Just an FYI for you LZip.....Rose was about 5 points over his per game season average during the Cavs series, including two 30+ point games.

I'll also go out on a limb and say that 19 points will be Curry's worst performance, by far, in this series.

[ZachTheZip]

Just an FYI for you LZip.....Rose was about 5 points over his per game season average during the Cavs series, including two 30+ point games.

I'll also go out on a limb and say that 19 points will be Curry's worst performance, by far, in this series.

I'll say it will be his worst point total, but I won't say "by far". Curry played frustrated thanks to Dellavedova's high-motor defense, and unless he can calm himself down he won't be putting up huge point totals.

[LZIp]

Just an FYI for you LZip.....Rose was about 5 points over his per game season average during the Cavs series, including two 30+ point games.

I'll also go out on a limb and say that 19 points will be Curry's worst performance, by far, in this series.

That was with a 1 footed and 1 legged Kyrie guarding him. How did he do in their elimination game where Delly logged major minutes because Kyrie left the game early on with injury?

I give Lebron all the credit in the world, but its a huge slap in the face to try to discredit Love, Kyrie, Blatt, or anybody else on the team. Lebron James is the best player in the world, but please do not insult anybody on the team. It's completely uncalled for.

How did Wade and Bosh do without Lebron this season'?

[skip-zip]

I'm very sorry LZip. Yes, saying anything negative about the ability of an athlete, especially members of the Cleveland Cavaliers, is indeed "completely uncalled for" on a forum in which sports fans voice their opinions about athletics.

I promise to be much more thoughtful of athlete's feelings next time, before discrediting them in any way. And I will be sure to remind every sport fan and sport writer in America to do the same.

[LZIp]

I'm very sorry LZip. Yes, saying anything negative about the ability of an athlete, especially members of the Cleveland Cavaliers, is indeed "completely uncalled for" on a forum in which sports fans voice their opinions about athletics.

I promise to be much more thoughtful of athlete's feelings next time, before discrediting them in any way. And I will be sure to remind every sport fan and sport writer in America to do the same.

You didn't answer either of the two questions I asked in my post, but I would have done the same if I were caught with my pants down, too.

But what I was trying to say nicely is that your post was ignorant.

[skip-zip]

Have you been drinking?

[Dave in Green]

Amazing what a little arm waving can accomplish against the NBA's MVP and best pure shooter. You'd think the other Cavs could wave their arms even better than that overrated little Aussie.

Curry In Half Court Vs. Dellavedova/All Other Cavs Guarding Him

Points: 0/17

FG: 0-8/4-10

3-Pt FG: 0-5/2-7

Turnovers: 4/1

[LZIp]

[LZIp]

[Captain Kangaroo]

1.) Dellavadova moves his feet well, and never reaches in. If you are a ref, you can't blow whistles on him because his technique is so good. He looks like a chipmunk, but he's a great defender.

2.) I thought Zips basketball fans were the biggest officiating-whiners of all time. But Golden State fans blow them away. Maybe they're equal, and the fact that there's 5X more of them makes it sound worse? Either way, I've never seen such a mass of fans with such a collectively low basketball IQ as those in Oakland.

[ZachTheZip]

Hope the Zips were watching the Cavs close it out at the FT line. Maybe they'll see how important it is to make your free throws.

[skip-zip]

Hey Dave,

As our resident "stat man", you should realize that making assumptions by pulling out very small snippets of time can backfire.

In this case, it happened in the very next game.

Even great shooters have slumps, and fans will try to find ways to attach a cause to them. I get it. But Curry's unbelievable scoring barrage in the 2nd half last night is even being referred to this morning as a "did-he-really-do-that?" NBA Finals moment.

[Dave in Green]

Gee whiz, and here I was thinking my stats had proven beyond all doubt that Curry could never possibly have a great scoring quarter or two in this whole series. The relevant point is not "did-he-really-do-that?" which everyone knew he eventually would but "did-they-really-do-that?" as in the Cavs beating the Warriors two games in a row without two of their Big Three. But speaking of stats, I'll take the Cavs in any game where Curry outscores Delly by 7 points or less.

[Dr Z]

Fact. Australian back up point guard wins NBA Championship!

Is Mr 61 next?

[LZIp]

Hey Dave,

As our resident "stat man", you should realize that making assumptions by pulling out very small snippets of time can backfire.

In this case, it happened in the very next game.

Even great shooters have slumps, and fans will try to find ways to attach a cause to them. I get it. But Curry's unbelievable scoring barrage in the 2nd half last night is even being referred to this morning as a "did-he-really-do-that?" NBA Finals moment.

His "unbelievable" scoring barrage was mostly in the 2nd half of the 4th quarter, not the whole second half (you know, when they were down by 20 at one point and 17 at the end of the 3rd). Not to mention many of Curry's shots were not made with Delly guarding him, again. Post is par for the course, though.

[Dr Z]

When the coach waives him (Delly) in, he gets all excited and runs out there and starts running at offensive players waving his arms all over the place. Somehow, it worked last night.

The clock struck midnight on Cinderella last night.

[Dave in Green]

For a short-handed team, game #4 was the worst in the championship series as it was the only time when a third game was played in five days. It was pretty obvious that the Cavs were feeling the fatigue while the Warriors had lots of energy from a deeper bench with players having averaged fewer minutes. Delly spent time on the bench getting more treatment for leg cramps and LeBron getting his head split open on the videocam didn't help. Most of the predictions about Golden State easily rolling over the Cavs were based on a deep and talented roster over a short bench missing two of its stars. Whether or not they win another game, the Cavs have shown a lot of heart under circumstances as difficult as any NBA Finals team has ever faced.

[Dave in Green]

LeBron James' unfathomable workload

Last Tuesday a group of leading sports scientists gathered in Northern England to watch the NBA Finals.

That wasn't the intended reason for the gathering. The idea was for top trainers and scientists, from teams like the Premier League's Southampton and Manchester United along with England, Scotland and Welsh rugby clubs, to hear from Michael Young, noted expert from the Athletic Lab. They wanted to learn what the latest research said about keeping highly paid athletes healthy and at their competitive best.

But the two-day workshop was overrun with talk of, and concern for, LeBron James. ...

[Dr Z]

But speaking of stats, I'll take the Cavs in any game where Curry outscores Delly by 7 points or less.

I agree. Mathew missed by a mere 25 last night, and is still trying to figure out the switch on a simple pick and roll. If LBJ doesn't win the MVP of this series, they mind as well do away with the award. I'm not big on individual awards in team sports, but it's very obvious in this case...which is the only time an award like that should be given IMO. Nonetheless, intriguing series.

I might be crazy, but the thought crossed my mind that every player looked to be sweating more than normal halfway through the first quarter. Is it possible the heat in the building was raised above normal with all the talk of the Cavs short bench and LBJ admitting to fatigue? Heat-gate. Probably not, but I'm going to mention it anyway.

[LZIp]

I agree. Mathew missed by a mere 25 last night, and is still trying to figure out the switch on a simple pick and roll. If LBJ doesn't win the MVP of this series, they mind as well do away with the award. I'm not big on individual awards in team sports, but it's very obvious in this case...which is the only time an award like that should be given IMO. Nonetheless, intriguing series.

I might be crazy, but the thought crossed my mind that every player looked to sweating more than normal halfway through the first quarter. Is it possible the heat in the building was raised above normal with all the talk of the Cavs short bench and LBJ admitting to fatigue? Heat-gate. Probably not, but I'm going to mention it anyway.

The Cavs bench played 68 minutes compared to Golden State's 50. The whole fatigue talk is overplayed and isn't the reason they are/will probably lose the series. They say Lebron is "drained" but the dude still put up 40/14/11 and has put up god-like numbers all series.

You hinted on the reason, they don't know how to play the pick and roll. Especially Green/Curry, but the p&r is a killer and has been all series and playoffs, really. I put more blame on Thompson or Blatt than Delly. Teams know he can't guard PGs so they run the switch over, and over. I think this is where K Love is missed. He's actually a lot better defender than people give him credit for and certainly more agile than TT.

[Dave in Green]

Dellavedova is a good backup for the injury-prone Irving. Playing his guts out for 15 minutes a game during the regular season, harassing opponents and scoring a few points per game is all that's needed to help keep Kyrie fresh and the Cavs winning. Averaging 40 minutes per game for a 7-game championship series for the short-handed Cavs against the best backcourt and team in the NBA is beyond expectations for any NBA backup PG.

The main reason why the Cavs bench played more minutes than the Warriors last night is because they went small for most of the game with Mosgov starting but only playing 9 minutes. The Warriors are fresher because they've had a deeper, healthier bench all season and throughout the playoffs. Their style of play is good at wearing down defenses.