Golden State Warriors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers, NBA Finals 2015: Series preview, schedule and prediction
The MVP and the league’s best team take on the best player in the world as the Warriors and Cavaliers face off in the NBA Finals.
The Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers are the two teams many expected to see in the NBA Finals, although the journey to the Finals came with some unexpected bumps along the way for both teams. Now that they're here, these teams will attempt to end long title droughts, with the Cavaliers looking to win their first ever NBA championship.
The Warriors are in the Finals for the first time in 40 years, going 12-3 over the first three rounds of the playoffs after finishing the regular season with a league-best 67-15 mark. MVP Stephen Curry has raised his game in the postseason, averaging 29.2 points and setting a new playoff record for three-pointers by knocking down 73 threes through the first three rounds, blowing away Reggie Miller’s old record of 58.
Curry had an injury scare in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals against the Houston Rockets when he endured a nasty fall, but he played in the series-ending Game 5 and is good to go for the Finals. Klay Thompson suffered a concussion in Game 5 but has been cleared to play Thursday.
The Cavaliers have also dealt with injuries on their way to the Finals, losing Kevin Love for the rest of the postseason to a shoulder injury in the first round and playing with Kyrie Irving in and out of the lineup because of a knee injury. Irving is still recovering from knee tendinitis and his injury could be a problem against the high-powered Warriors.
While these injuries to key players have provided the Cavaliers some adversity, LeBron James and Co. have overcome it to go 12-2 thus far in the playoffs, including a sweep of the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference Finals. James has struggled with his outside shooting, but he's been dominant in just about every other aspect of the game, averaging 27.6 points, 10.4 rebounds and 8.3 assists.
James has gotten help from the Cavaliers' role players, with Tristan Thompson coming up big in place of Love and both former Knicks, J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert, providing major contributions. Matthew Dellavedova has also become a household name in these playoffs, for both good and bad reasons.
Golden State was elite on both ends of the court in the regular season, and that has continued into the postseason. However, Cleveland has statistically been better by notching the best offensive and defensive ratings in the playoffs.
It'll be fascinating to see how the Warriors defend James in a seven-game series. A host of defenders will be used on him, including the versatile Draymond Green, the Defensive Player of the Year runner-up. Stopping James is just about impossible, and Steve Kerr has to hope his defense can limit the damage while not allowing the role players to make too big of an impact.
The same can be said for how the Cavaliers defend Curry and the Warriors’ multi-faceted attack. Cleveland’s defense has reached new levels in the postseason, but Golden State is a whole different beast compared to the East foes the Cavaliers beat to get to the Finals.
Whatever strategies are used, this should be an entertaining series. The MVP and the best team in the league against the best player in the world. The Warriors enter as the favorite, but never count out LeBron James.
The matchup
- Warriors (67-15, expected: 65-17) vs. Cavaliers (53-29, expected: 53-29 )
- Offensive efficiency: Warriors: 109.7 (2nd) | Cavaliers: 107.7 (4th)
- Defensive efficiency: Warriors: 98.2 (1st) | Cavaliers: 104.4 (20th)
- Season series: 1-1 split. The Warriors earned a 112-94 home victory on Jan. 9 in a game that didn’t involve LeBron James. The Cavaliers, led by James’s 42 points, returned the favor in Cleveland on Feb. 26.
4 questions that will decide the series
We asked our Warriors site, Golden State of Mind, and our Cavaliers site, Fear The Sword, to give us the lowdown on these two teams.
1. What do you think is your team’s biggest advantage in this series?
Golden State of Mind: Depth is the key to this series. For a Cavs team hobbled by injuries to Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, Golden State’s clean(er) bill of health must look awfully unfair. If the Warriors push the pace, and keep moving the ball like they should, it’s unlikely an already-taxed Cavs team will be able to keep up.
Fear the Sword: Perhaps the only advantage that the Cavaliers can certifiably bank on in this series is LeBron James. He’s been incredibly good in the playoffs, even as he struggles to score efficiently. If he can bend the Warriors defense, bully Harrison Barnes, get Draymond Green into foul trouble once or twice and outwit Andre Iguodala, the Cavaliers have a chance. It’s a tall order, but he is LeBron James. He’ll need as much help offensively as he can get from Kyrie Irving, but James represents the one place the Cavaliers should be able to put their mark on these games. 2. What do you think is your team’s biggest disadvantage in this series?
GSoM: Defensive rebounding. The Cavs attack their offensive glass like animals, and the Warriors have been merely decent on that end in 2015. Whether they camp out under the hoop to challenge Cleveland, or continue to leak out in search of transition opportunities may be the biggest strategic decision of the series for Coach Kerr.
FtS: Stephen Curry was the MVP. Kyrie Irving was, in this observer’s eyes, a deserved third team All-NBA guard. But with Irving at 90 percent (and that might be optimistic), he isn’t on Curry’s level. He probably isn’t in his stratosphere. That’s OK, and the Cavaliers might be able to survive that. But finding a way to minimize the damage Curry may impose requires tough choices for the Cavaliers defensively. Putting Iman Shumpert on him is far from a guarantee.
3. Which player needs to step his game up most for your team to win?
GSoM:This one is easy: whoever has to guard LeBron. The Warriors are certain to use a defense by committee approach to the star forward, and may send more than a few double teams his way. But whatever the Warriors do, they hope Barnes, Green, Iguodala and others are able to at least slow down King James a tiny bit, without fouling out.
FtS: Irving’s ability to make the offensive end easier for LeBron James can’t be understated. Per NBA.com/stats, James’ usage rate with Irving on the floor in the regular season was below 30 percent. With Irving on the bench, LeBron used over 40 percent of the Cavs’ possessions and his true shooting drops by over five points. But I’ll go with J.R. Smith. In the playoffs he has a true shooting rate over 60 and a usage rate under 20 percent. He’s not playing like a gunner and he’s been ridiculously efficient. The Cavaliers will need him to sustain that to have any kind of chance. We will see if he can.
4. What is your series prediction and why?
GSoM: Warriors in six. Kyrie and J.R. Smith are capable of swinging a game all by themselves, and despite a short rotation, the Cavs don’t have many glaring holes. But that lack of depth will wear on Cleveland and cost them late in games. Additionally, Kyrie’s knee injury, which still isn’t 100 percent, could make him a defensive liability in switch situations. I just can’t see him fighting through three screens to chase Klay or Curry right now.
FtS: I’ll put on the Wine-colored glasses and say Cavaliers in six. It’s dependent on Irving being productive, and Tristan Thompson, Smith and Shumpert maintaining their play from the Bulls and Hawks series. That LeBron guy will have to be one of the best players of all time, and it still might not be enough. It should be fun, though.
Predictions
Ziller | Flannery | Prada | O'Donnell | Golden State of Mind | Fear the Sword |
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Schedule
Game 1: Thursday, June 4. Oracle Arena, Oakland, 9 p.m. ET (ABC)
Game 2: Sunday, June 7. Oracle Arena, Oakland, 8 p.m. ET (ABC)
Game 3: Tuesday, June 9. Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, 9 p.m. ET (ABC)
Game 4: Thursday, June 11. Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, 9 p.m. ET (ABC)
Game 5 (if necessary): Sunday, June 14. Oracle Arena, Oakland, 8 p.m. ET (ABC)
Game 6 (if necessary): Tuesday, June 16. Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, 9 p.m. ET (ABC)
Game 7 (if necessary): Friday, June 19. Oracle Arena, Oakland, 9 p.m. ET (ABC)
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