The Cleveland Cavaliers needed things to be different in Game 3, and playing at home without Kevin Love, they were in a 120-90 blowout win over the Golden State Warriors. Love's injury in the previous game seemed like a potential blow to the Cavaliers' chances of coming back from a 2-0 series deficit, but the team's lopsided victory without him adds a new wrinkle to this year's NBA Finals.
NBA Finals 2016: No Kevin Love, no problem for Cavaliers in Game 3 smackdown
Playing at home without Kevin Love proved a big difference for Cleveland in Game 3.
Love suffered a head injury in Game 2 after getting an elbow from Harrison Barnes, then failed to pass the NBA's post-concussion protocol before the contest Wednesday night. The Cavaliers decided to start Richard Jefferson in his place, with LeBron James sliding over to the power forward spot, and the end result was a 30-point victory in a must-win game.
Now, it’s important to note that the Cavaliers probably got a boost out of returning to their home court, regardless of whether Love was there. The team was always going to come out with an extra dose of intensity for such a crucial contest and that had nothing to do with 35-year-old Jefferson getting extra minutes.
However, given the way Cleveland struggled with Love in the first two games, only to pummel Golden State thoroughly without him, it’s hard not to wonder how his absence -- or return -- impacts the remainder of this series.
Love is a very good player, but he's been a tough fit for Cleveland in this series. His lack of lateral mobility makes him a liability against the Warriors' free-flowing offense and hands a team like Golden State constant opportunities to force mismatches in the pick-and-roll. On the offensive end, Love struggled to score in the post and the Warriors' decision to challenge LeBron to beat them took away some of the Cavs' key plays. Without anyone regularly double-teaming LeBron or Kyrie Irving, Love couldn't get the open looks he was accustomed to, and because Golden State is so strong in the post, he couldn't bully his way to post chances, either.
In Game 3, without Love on the floor, the Cavaliers were able to go smaller and faster. Starting center Tristan Thompson repeatedly helped free up chances for Irving via the pick-and-roll and finished with a double-double. LeBron finally got it going after a cool start en route to 32 points and J.R. Smith scored 20. Jefferson even played well with nine points and eight rebounds in 33 minutes, continuing to blow the minds of people who had forgotten Richard Jefferson still plays in the NBA.
It all begs the questions of how much Love’s absence impacted the Cavaliers’ improved performance, and how the team might handle his return if he’s cleared to play. In Game 3, we saw a completely different team, and when looking at the variables at play, Love’s absence might be No. 1. Surely returning home after playing in the Oracle helped, but the way Cleveland was forced to adjust its rotation without him was another huge factor.
The Cavaliers got precisely what they wanted out of Game 3 -- a lopsided win to breathe new life into the series. Now they just need to figure out Love’s status, and, if he’s ready to play, how much he’ll impact the team’s plans going forward. Cleveland played better in Game 3 without Love. Now they just have to figure out how much of that actually resulted from his absence.
2 more things
Stephen Curry’s no-good night
The MVP led Golden State with 19 points, yet for much of Game 3, Curry was noticeably struggling. Much of his offensive production came in the second half once the Cavaliers had already began pulling away. In the first half, Curry had just two points with three turnovers and three fouls. He couldn’t even put together a proper 2-on-1 with Klay Thompson. Overall, Curry shot 6-of-13 from the field and 3-of-9 from three in the game. Compared to Irving, who had 30 points on 12-of-25 shooting, it’s clear that the Warriors’ superstar point guard got outplayed. We don’t say that very often, and Curry was disappointed in his play, too.
Curry: "I'm disappointed I didn't do anything to help my team win tonight."
— Marcus Thompson (@ThompsonScribe) June 9, 2016
In three Finals games, Curry is now averaging 16 points on 44-percent shooting. He had six turnovers Wednesday and has 15 overall in the series. Compared to the West Finals, in which Curry averaged 28 points per game against Oklahoma City, he’s not playing nearly as well right now. LeBron’s inefficiency got a lot of attention earlier in the series, but the other MVP hasn’t been stellar of late, either.
At least he didn't suffer a left thigh contusion like Thompson did. After the game, Thompson called the play by Timofey Mozgov that caused the injury, which caused him to briefly leave the game, "kinda dirty."
The Warriors’ chances are still very good
And not just because they're, y'know, the Warriors. While a 2-1 series lead in the NBA Finals obviously isn't as good as being up 3-0, history remains on Golden State's side. Teams leading 2-1 in the Finals have gone on to win the series 82.5 percent of the time over 57 instances. That's not as solid as the 100 percent success rate for teams leading 3-0 -- no team in history has blown that lead in the Finals -- but it's a reminder that for whatever momentum might have shifted in the series with this game, the odds remain firmly in the Warriors' favor. Comebacks are rare in the NBA Finals, and none of those teams had ever won 73 regular season games.
Play of the night
LEBRON FINALS DUNK ohhhhhh yeah that’s the good stuff.
1 fun thing
Scores
Cavaliers 120, Warriors 90 (SB Nation recap | Fear the Sword recap | Golden State of Mind recap)
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