NBA Update

OK, so you will recall that the first three games of the Big Showdown between the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Caveliers weren't all that exciting:

6/2:  Golden St. 104, Cleveland 89
6/5:  Golden St. 110, Cleveland 77
6/8:  Cleveland 120, Golden St. 90

But I had a feeling that both sides would play for keeps in Game Four, and I was right.  It was a real thriller all the way.  Going into the last quarter, Golden State led 79-77, and they led by 88-83 with eight minutes to go.  Down the stretch, the Warriors just kept making shot after shot from three-point range -- they went 17 of 36 from the game, for a shooting percentage of 47.2 percent -- and they won 108-97.  They were the first team to beat Cleveland at home in the playoffs all year.  Having taken a 3-1 lead, it seemed certain that they would wrap up the title in Game Five.  I felt that they were worthy champions, and I was glad I had watched this game.

However, the season wasn't nearly as over as I thought.  Draymond Green had played a huge role in Golden State's Game Four win -- he had 12 rebounds and 9 points, and had been a dominant defensive player.  But after reviewing the footage of a late-game scrap between Green and LeBron, the NBA decided that Green would not be eligible for Game Five.  The Cavs also decided to junk the more team-oriented style of offense they had been playing, as well as the pokey Eastern Conference pace of play, and let Lebron and Kyrie Irving do their thing.  The result was old school, racehorse basketball -- after 40 minutes, Cleveland led 99-92, and when was the last time you saw a score like that in college hoops?  But in the end, the shots were not falling for Golden State -- the Warriors went 14-43 from behind the arc, a shooting percentage of only 32.6 percent.  Meanwhile, Lebron and Irving put on a show for the ages:

LeBron:  12-22 on 2-point shots, 4-8 on 3-point shots, 5-8 from the line, 41 points, 16 rebounds, 7 assists

Irving:  12-17 on 2-point shots, 5-7 on 3-point shots, 2-2 from the line, 41 points, 6 assists

So the Cavs won 112-97, and sent the series back to Cleveland.

Now I never thought the Cavaliers were going to lose the last game of the year in Cleveland, and they did not.  Stephen Curry only played 35 minutes due to foul trouble, and he actually fouled out of the game with four minutes to go.  Cleveland took a somewhat slower pace this time -- the Cavs led 86-79 after 40 minutes -- but the Warriors still had no answer for LeBron and Irving:

LeBron:  13-21 on 2-point shots, 3-6 on 3-point shots, 6-8 from the line, 41 points, 8 rebounds, 11 assists

Irving:  5-13 on 2-point shots, 2-5 on 3-point shots, 7-7 from the line, 23 points, 3 assists.

So the Cavs won 115-101, and we were all tied up.

(By the way, let me just say here that in this series, Irving's play has been absolutely spectacular.  In Games Three through Six, Irving has averaged 32 points per game.  In that stretch, he has made 12-25 three-pointers (48 percent), 38-70 two-pointers (54.3 percent), and 16-17 free throws (94.1 percent).  And yet he also made room for LeBron to score 41 points in both Game Five and Game Six.  As far as I can tell, Irving may actually be what Russell Westbrook thinks he is.)

So tonight, in Oakland, the Warriors and the Cavaliers will play one of the most important games in League History.  The reputations of LeBron, Curry, Irving, Klay Thompson, Steve Kerr, the Warriors, the Cavaliers, and even the city of Cleveland, are all on the line.  Years from now, when people look back on LeBron, will they remember him as the guy who drove Cleveland to a come-from-behind victory, or the guy who lost to Golden State in back-to-back years?  Will they remember this Warriors team, which went 73-9 in the regular season, as one of the greatest teams ever, or as the team that blew a 3-1 lead in the finals?

I have absolutely no idea what's going to happen.  Vegas has made the Warriors a five-point favorite in a game where the over/under is 207 points.  That would work out to a 106-101 Warrior victory, which does sound about right.  Game Four was the only game so far in which both teams were at full strength and equally motivated, and the Warriors won that game even though it was in Cleveland.  On the other hand, the Warriors had all kinds of trouble with Oklahoma City in Game Seven, even though they were at home -- and LeBron and Irving are better than Durant and Westbrook.  In any event, if you were only going to watch one NBA game in this decade, I would suggest that tonight is the one to watch.