Jason Kipnis, Michael Brantley climbing in All-Star voting (but still need help)
June 3, 2015Delonte West says LeBron James saved his life, he’s pulling for Cavs in Finals
June 3, 2015The Cleveland Cavaliers captured the Eastern Conference crown in 2015. This means two very important things: 1) I get to buy a new t-shirt celebrating a Cleveland sports accomplishment, and 2) the club will play in the NBA Finals starting Thursday night. Their opponent, the Golden State Warriors, won 67 regular season games, the Pacific Division, and the Western Conference. Both teams have a fighting shot to host a parade, but what else lies within this matchup? As we have all postseason, let’s take a look.
Familiar Faces
One very important Warrior hails from Ohio (we will get to him), but a few others in the organization once called Cleveland home. Warriors Shaun Livingston and Marreese Speights played for the Cavaliers in 2012-13. You may remember this as Season 3 B.L. (Betwixt LeBron). The Cavs signed Livingston on Christmas Day 2012 after the Wizards cut him loose. The 6-foot-7 guard appeared in 49 games for the Wine and Gold recording 7.2 points per game. Speights arrived via a trade with Memphis in January of 2013. In 39 games for the Cavs he averaged 10.2 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. Neither player enjoyed an especially memorable career in Northeast Ohio. In fact, the longest tenured former Cavalier on the Warriors now wears a suit and tie.
Golden State hired Steve Kerr as head basketball coach before the 2014-15 season began. Clevelanders will remember him for playing parts of four years with the Cavaliers from 1989-1993. He mostly backed up Mark Price, but still averaged 6.0 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 2.7 assists in Cleveland. A true rookie head coach, Kerr hardly resembled a neophyte when the club started out 19-2. His team finished first in defensive efficiency and second in offensive efficiency. Those rankings are a credit to Kerr, but also reflect the incredible talent on the roster.
Wardell Stephen Curry II. His friends call him “Steph.” The 27-year-old point guard was born in Akron and won the 2015 NBA MVP Award. Oh, and he is on pace to become the greatest shooter in NBA history.1 Comparing only their first six seasons, Curry has made more three pointers and has a higher 3-point shooting percentage than both Reggie Miller and Ray Allen. While much can happen between now and the end of his career, Curry is a rising star that the Cavaliers will need to handle this series.
Series History
The Cavaliers and Warriors have never met in the postseason before. Cleveland appeared in their only other NBA Finals in 2007, succumbing to the San Antonio Spurs 4-0. The upcoming series marks the Warriors’ fourth Finals appearance since relocating to California. They are 1-2 in the championship series with their only win coming in 1975. Cleveland is 51-54 all-time against the Warriors. In 2014-15 the clubs split their only two meetings. On January 9, the host Warriors bested the Cavs 112-94. That game fell during LeBron James’ sabbatical which makes extrapolating meaning from it more difficult. On February 26 in Cleveland, the Cavaliers defeated Golden State 110-99. James outscored Curry 42-18.
Bay Area Fans
40 years. A full four decades separate the Golden State Warriors from their most recent NBA Finals appearance. In 1975 they conquered the Washington Bullets 4-0 to earn their first title since relocating to California. While a lot of time has passed, it has not been all doom and gloom for Bay Area sports fans of late. Here is a comparison of the Cleveland and San Francisco/Oakland sports scenes since 2010 (all baseball stats are through Sunday May 31).
The Bay Area is a bit spoiled sports-wise. The San Francisco Giants won the 2010, 2012 and 2014 World Series. The San Francisco 49ers won the NFC in 2012. Admittedly the Raiders and Athletics have not set the world on fire, but both possess records better than both the Cleveland Browns and Indians over the same time period. One could say that Cleveland is more due, but I dislike the suggestion that one city “deserves” to win more than the other. Even if that may be true, the teams don’t let that factor into their gameplan and it seems to matter most to fans who argue over city merit via misspelled blog comments. Still, I feel that if the Warriors do not deliver, then the Bay Area at least has some fond parade memories to enjoy.
Final Thoughts
So where does that leave us, Cleveland? If you are anything like me, the past week provided nerves, excitement, anticipation, dread, and confidence in some order. The team has an air of both “nobody believes in us” and “we’re not supposed to be here.” No one would have been surprised if the Kevin Love-less (and briefly JR Smith-less) Cavs could not best the Chicago Bulls. No one would have registered shock if the mighty Atlanta Hawks proved too much to handle. Yet, those teams are solidifying golf plans while the Wine and Gold gameplan for the Warriors. More than anything else, I am excited. The NBA did not plan this long a delay but the anticipation serves as a tasty appetizer for the championship series. We are here, Cleveland. We are four wins away from the Larry O’Brien trophy. The best active basketball player on the planet is suiting up for the Cavaliers. The next two weeks, for better or worse, will be memorable. The team is ready. Let’s go. Waaaariors… Come out to plaaaaay.
- via Shane Young @YoungNBA [↩]
12 Comments
“They are 2-1 in the championship series with their only win coming in 1975. ”
Does not compute.
http://www.reactiongifs.us/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/im_ready_game_of_thrones.gif
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CGmIYMMWQAETEZI.jpg
Btw I have my ECF gear and now I’m ready to get some NBA Champions swag!!!
1-2*
WFNY regrets the error, thanks for pointing it out so we could clean it up.
The Warriors are the enemy. Therefore, it was only a win if they lost. Hence, 2-1.
#Spin
The only gear worth buying is NBA Champions gear. Anything else is needy and possibly a jinx. #hottake
After this long layoff, Game 1 is either going to be a huge boost or a crushing letdown. The good news is its a road game, so the tendency of our home crowds to pucker won’t be an issue for the team. A hostile environment actually helps us, I think.
A little off-topic, but the idiocy never stops for the national media. This little gem from a post today by SI’s Michael Rosenberg.
“Love seems unhappy, and it would not surprise anybody if he opts out of his contract this summer, despite recently claiming he plans to re-sign.”
Incredible.
http://www.reactiongifs.com/r/sad1.gif
Block it out man we have a series to win!
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