The NBA Finals are a huge pile of garbage (time)

Good morning. Let’s basketball.

IT’S ON: They say a series begins when a home team loses. In this case, the series begins when the team down 2-0 wallops the 73-win team by 30 at home. The Cavaliers jumped on the Warriors from the tip and mauled them all night to the tune of a 120-90 win. Kyrie Irving and J.R. Smith cooked, LeBron broke out and the Golden State stars were M.I.A. but for a third quarter push by Steph Curry.

Cleveland went in and out of its more aggressive, more crisp pose -- there were points in the second half where the Cavs who got blown out in Oakland peaked through. But Golden State played rough enough for it not to matter, and the shots that were clanking in California went down in Ohio.

Paul Flannery is right: the NBA Finals got real on Wednesday, but they sure stayed absurd.

Game 4 is Friday at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.

GAME 3 IN ONE VINE, LEBRON ALLEY-OOPS THE MOON EDITION.

THE D-WORD: We have a controversy! Timofey Mozgov hit Klay Thompson with an illegal screen that sent the Splash Brother backstage -- Mozgov kinda stuck his knee out, it hit Thompson’s thigh. After the game, Thompson called the play “kinda dirty.” Pearls were clutched.

LEBRONDOM: Before Game 3, Mike Prada broke down LeBron’s struggles to get going offensively in Oakland. The conclusion: LeBron has lost a step, which had been preventing him from putting pressure on the Warriors to double. I daresay James figured it out in Game 3, though. Here’s Michael Lee on the King’s Game 3.

SOMEONE’S ON EDGE: Curry tried to dunk on a dead ball after the refs blew the whistle. LeBron, near the rim already, decided to block Steph. Yeesh.

WORTH NOTING: Kyrie put Steph and Klay on skates multiple times. Here’s one example.

ALI’S ACTIVISM AND YOU: Bethlehem Shoals on how Muhammad Ali’s activism grants NBA players on opportunity to be heard.

HMM: Jonathan Tjarks asks whether Kevin Love’s spot in Cleveland can be saved.

OOF: There’s a lot happening in this Ramona Shelburne piece on Dan Gilbert and Cleveland. But the most important thing is that Gilbert’s pal Tom Izzo implored the Cavaliers’ franchisee to pick Draymond Green. The Cavs had the Nos. 33 and 34 picks in 2012. Green went No. 35. OOOOF. (The Cavs ended up packaging those two picks and No. 24 to get Tyler Zeller.)

GLORIOUS: I could watch the top examples of NBA players viciously swatting children all day. Kevin Durant is SO not nice!

ENTER THE DRAGAN: Is Dragan Bender the NBA’s next unicorn?

INTERESTING: Why there will never be a gay Jackie Robinson.

GREATNESS RECOGNIZES GREATNESS: I could read Jerry West glowing about LeBron every day.

IRON MAN: Alex Wong on Bob Rosen, who has been scoring Knicks games since the 1960s.

THANKS, JOHN STARKS: In a really cool profile from Katie Baker, Mike Breen credits John Starks’ infamous Game 6 airball for saving his broadcast career.

THE ARCHITECT: How Bob Myers got into team management and built the Warriors.

STEP OFF: Really good look at what made Tyronn Lue who he is by Howard Beck.

HE’S BACK: The Pelicans have hired Danny Ferry as a special advisor. He’ll be reporting to old friend Dell Demps. Interesting!

AND FINALLY: Not basketball, but this Dan Devine piece about masculinity and fatherhood and career choices is spectacular.

Happy Thursday. See you next time.

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