NBA Finals: Down 2-0, Cavs may already be on the brink

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NBA Finals: Down 2-0, Cavs may already be on the brink

When these Finals began, there were many wondering if the Cleveland Cavaliers would be able to compete with the Golden State Warriors. It is a new cast of characters for LeBron and he had to be asking himself if they would get the job done. After all, he is 3-5 in the Finals but is making his eighth straight Finals appearance.

For the Warriors, they continue to be the greatest show on the court, maybe ever. They have two of the best shooters this game has ever seen in Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry. Draymond Green is their emotional leader and oh, there is that guy named Kevin Durant too. The real question everyone was asking was could the Cavs even win a game in this series.

Game 1

It was no secret that if the Cavs were to steal one on the Bay, the King would have to come up huge and he did just that with a 51-point performance. He would also need a little support from his cast mates. Game 1 of the NBA Finals would provide some early drama and see the Cavs stick around for most of the game. Yet, the officials had their work cut out for them on a few calls.

It was 56-56 going into the locker room at the half and the game looked like it just might be competitive. Each time the Warriors went on a run, the Cavs would answer and stay with them. Kevin Love, who in my opinion has not been good enough since coming to Cleveland, was good enough in the first half. In the end, the problem would be that except for nine points and 11 rebounds from Larry Nance Jr, there was not much more help.

But it would all come down to the waning moments and the guys with the whistle. Oh yeah, there would be one gigantic blunder of blunders. With just under a minute left, James drove past Curry and finished off a three-point play, but it was not to be. Following a review by the refs, a charge on Durant was ruled a foul by James and Durant tied it at 104. But the Cavs still had a chance that would go down in flames.

J.R is once again J.R.

Many times in the career of J.R. Smith he has been the bonehead of the game. While with the New York Knicks in 2014, he got the offensive rebound with less than 24 seconds left in a tie game. All he had to do is hold for the final shot and a possible win. Instead, he did what shooters do and shot. He claims he thought the Knicks were down two.

In November of 2016, he just lost his mind when against the Milwaukee Bucks, he went to embrace Jason Terry when Terry came off the bench to show him some love. The problem was there was a live play going on and a wide-open dunk was the result.

In Game 1 this year, he may have topped all of his blunders. With the score tied, George Hill made one of two free throws to tie the game. When he missed the second one, Smith got the rebound over a lackadaisical Kevin Durant. All he had to do was do what he does best….shoot the ball. Instead, he inexplicably dribbled the ball running out the clock while James was yelling at him about the clock and the fact that the game was tied.

The Cavs never recovered and lost the game 124-114 in overtime. Another blunder in the history books for one, J.R. Smith.

Game 2

Now, it was do or die for Cleveland as this was must-win territory. Not only would they need another virtuoso performance from James, they would need each and every player to step up their game big-time. Well, first thing was they did not get that game from LeBron, though he did get 29 points, 13 rebounds, and eight assists. But with what we have come to expect from him, that just would not do.

In this game, each run by the Warriors was not answered as stern as in Game 1. This time, Golden State would keep its lead. On this night, Steph would be Steph and hit from anywhere and everywhere setting a Finals record with nine three-pointers. Durant and Thompson would support him and the Finals now became a rout.

There was no need for a blunder in this one as the Warriors started fast defensively. There was no worry about James making a run on his own to save his teammates. No, in this game it was all Warriors and now the one question that should be on every mind in the basketball world is, will the Cavs even win a game.

Remember that Cleveland found themselves down 2-0 to the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. The problem here is that the Warriors are not the Celtics. At one point in the fourth, Curry made an off-balance three from way beyond the arc that said it all. Not tonight Cleveland, not tonight.