Good morning. Let’s basketball.
LeBron’s going to lose another NBA Finals and he’s mad as hell
Good morning. We have that and more in Saturday’s NBA newsletter.
BURN: In our first close game of the NBA Finals, the Cavaliers looked poised to tie up the series until they didn't. A masterful defensive effort in the second half helped the Warriors close a Cleveland lead and build a sustainable one of their own. In the end, Golden State came away with a 108-97 win and a 3-1 series lead. They can close out the season on Monday back at home.
As Tim Cato writes, the Warriors cajoled the Cavaliers into playing isolation heavy offense down the stretch -- it was shocking how stagnant Cleveland became once Golden State built a multi-possession lead -- and that was the death of the Cavs. Kyrie Irving had a huge scoring night, and LeBron had nine assists, but the way Cleveland played on Friday was far off how they performed in a blowout win on Wednesday.
Kevin Love came off the bench and performed well (and received a huge ovation). That doesn’t mean he’s staying in Cleveland; here are a bunch of trade options for the Cavaliers. Tristan Thompson was an offensive rebounding monster early. Cleveland’s defensive discipline was hit-or-miss; Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson made the Cavs pay for that for really the first time this series.
Most importantly, James Michael McAdoo played meaningful minutes in a close NBA Finals game. I love this game!
Game 5 is Monday at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.
MAD: LeBron and Draymond Green got into it late, with James attempting to step over Green after a collision (or a flop) sent him to the floor. Green apparently hit LeBron between the legs and then swung on James but missed, LeBron stopped to get in Green’s face while play was in action, the pair got overly physical on the ensuing rebound and were back in each other’s faces. According to ESPN, Draymond also called James a “bitch,” which set him off. LeBron looked mad to the final buzzer, even jawing with Curry at one point.
No technicals or flagrants were called during action, but the tap that connected with LeBron’s groin could be deemed a flagrant after league review. A Flagrant-1 would lead to a Game 5 suspension for Green. A Flagrant-2 would lead to a suspension for Games 5 and 6. If it were any other player, I’d guess no flagrant upgrade was coming. Given Green’s recent history, I think we *might* get an F-1.
COURT INVASION: Near the end of the game, a professional streaker ran out on the court with an accurate political statement written on his chest. Please don’t invade the court, y’all.
OH NO: Usher is a part-owner of the Cavs but went to the Warriors locker room to greet Steph after the game. The people of Cleveland are gonna get a strongly-worded letter in Comic Sans now ...
OH YES: Jeff Van Gundy shared the mother of all O.J. chase stories. I was reeling from this one. I’ll just say this: double-murderers on the lam, they’re just like us! (Of course, as with all great stories, this one may be untrue.)
ANOTHER ONE: Russell Westbrook will not play in Rio. Reports indicate Boogie Cousins, however, has been assured a spot. Just give him four shooters and we’re good.
Happy Saturday. See you next time.
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