Basketball Daily Dose: Dose: Cavs Win 2016 NBA Title
Cavaliers 93, Warriors 89 (Cavs win series 4-3)
For the first time since the 1964 Browns, the Cavaliers broke a 52-year drought and finally brought a title back to Cleveland. The Cavs also became the first team in the Finals to come back from a 3-1deficit, but doing it against a historic Warriors team makes this even more special. But it doesn’t even stop there… The Cavs are also the first team to win on the road in Game 7 of the Finals since the Washington Bullets in 1978.
LeBron James clinched his third NBA ring and was the unanimous Finals MVP, joining Michael Jordan, Tim Duncan, Shaquille O’Neal and Magic Johnson as the only players with three or more Finals MVP awards. James got off to a rough start in the first quarter with four turnovers, but he would eventually get it going and posted a triple-double with 27 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds. He was incredible on the defensive end with two steals and three massive blocks, and his block in the fourth quarter on an Andre Iguodala dunk attempt might’ve been the best one that I’ve ever seen. Bringing a title to Cleveland has been his biggest accomplishment by far, and as much as I love Stephen Curry, James proved that he’s still the best player in the NBA today. If you disagree, this might change your mind… LeBron became the first player in NBA history to lead both teams in any playoff series in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks. I can’t even do that in NBA 2k… All kidding aside, this was a special series from LeBron and it will undoubtedly move him up in the rankings of the all-time greats.
How about Kyrie Irving? The guy outplayed Curry all series long and hit the biggest shot of his career and the Finals with a fadeaway 3-pointer with less than a minute left in the game. Irving finished with 26 points, six rebounds and two treys, so maybe those claims that the Cavs would’ve also won the Finals last year if Irving never hurt his knee have some credibility.
I also have to give a shoutout to Kevin Love. It seems like everyone, including myself, had given up on him, but he had a huge game on the glass with 14 rebounds (four offensive). He only had nine points on 3-of-9 shooting, but he stepped up with Tristan Thompson in foul trouble and he may have just extended his career with the Cavs. J.R. Smith came to play in the second half and had 12 points, four boards and two treys, while Thompson finished with nine points, three boards and two blocks.
Moving on to the Warriors, they lost this game when coach Steve Kerr decided to start Festus Ezeli over Andre Iguodala. Ezeli was an embarrassment from the start, missing several easy looks and finishing with just one rebound in 11 minutes. Kerr also made a huge mistake by inserting Ezeli into the game during a crucial stretch of the fourth quarter, as Ezeli fouled LeBron James on a 3-point attempt and also came up short on a wide open layup. Ezeli is going to be a free agent this summer, so he just cost himself a ton of money. Anderson Varejao wasn’t much better, so I was very disappointed that the Warriors didn’t go with Marreese Speights instead.
While we’re on the topic of free agency, Harrison Barnes is going to be a restricted free agent this summer, but he did nothing to help his case for a max deal. He was a combined 2-of-22 from the field in his previous two outings, but he didn’t look much better on Sunday with 10 points (3-of-10 FGs), two 3-pointers, two rebounds, one assist and one steal. I’m guessing he will still get a max deal with the rising salary cap, but the Warriors should think twice about matching opposing offers after this disappearing act.
Stephen Curry wasn’t the MVP that we saw during the regular season, but I’m not going to be too hard on him. He simply hasn’t been the same since he sprained his knee during the series against the Rockets and he has picked up a few nagging injuries since then. An offseason full of rest should be great for him and he’s still going to be the No. 1 pick in fantasy drafts next season. Klay Thompson never got it going with just 14 points on 6-of-17 shooting and Iguodala played through a back issue on his way to four points, nine rebounds, four assists and a couple blocks and steals.
Had the Warriors won the series, Draymond Green would’ve made a strong case to be the Finals MVP. Green had five 3-pointers in the first half alone, finishing the game with 32 points, 15 rebounds, nine assists, two steals and six treys. Unfortunately for Green, he might face a lot of scrutiny during the offseason because his suspension for Game 5 was the turning point of the series in my opinion.
Looking ahead to next season, I would assume that the Cavs will try to bring back the same core as long as LeBron re-signs in free agency, but don’t be surprised if they at least explore the idea of moving Kevin Love. As for the Warriors, they will have some difficult decisions to make due to Barnes’ free agency, but you better believe that they’re going to do everything in their power to bring Kevin Durant to Golden State.
Well, that’s all I got for you today. I thoroughly enjoyed my second season with Rotoworld and I would like to thank all the readers for the continued support of the site. I’m already looking forward to the 2016-17 season, but be sure to follow me on Twitter for coverage of the 2016 NBA Draft on Thursday and for the upcoming summer league. Once again, congrats to both the Cavaliers and the Warriors on an incredible season.
