One day after the Cleveland Cavaliers drubbed the Toronto Raptors on the road by 21 points in Game 3, the Golden State Warriors — in spite of awful shooting nights by both Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson — picked up yet another win over the Utah Jazz. The set of impressive victories by both teams was a stark reminder that the regular season and early playoff matchups, while entertaining, are mere pre-season games for two teams that have paced themselves for a Finals three-match all season long.
The Cavaliers and Warriors are merely warming up for each other
The Cavs and Dubs are on pace to sweep their first and second rounds. It’s the pre-season for championship hopefuls.
Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images
At the start of the season, everyone knew the Cavaliers and Warriors would meet for a third consecutive NBA Finals showdown come June. That much was decided when Golden State added Kevin Durant over the summer, and he reminded the world in Game 3, when he picked up the slack for his struggling teammates.
No matter which team the Warriors face in the Western Conference Finals, the result will most likely be the same.
The Houston Rockets are entertaining to watch, but James Harden and a fleet of shooters aren’t enough to compete with the Warriors’ stacked lineup. Neither are the senescent Spurs, no matter how unstoppable Kawhi Leonard has been.
The same goes for the Cavaliers, who have bulldozed their way through the East. The Raptors revamped their team specifically for Cleveland, adding P.J. Tucker and Serge Ibaka at the trade deadline. It was of no avail because the Cavaliers have the best player in the world.
LeBron James’ stat line in the playoffs is video game-like. He’s been equal parts unstoppable and disrespectful, averaging 34 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, 2.4 steals and 1.6 blocks through seven playoff games. He’s shooting 48.6 percent from downtown on five three-point attempts per game, super-charging his confidence to where he’s spinning the ball in his hands before pulling up and drilling contested three-pointers.
James has DeMar DeRozan offering $100 to anyone who can stop him. Unfortunately, that’s a dead mission.
Both the Cavs and Dubs swept their first round opponents, and after Saturday, they’re both one game away from inflicting a similar fate on their Semifinals challengers. And odds are, they’ll do the same to their conference finals foe as well.
The Celtics hold the No. 1 seed, but there’s a reason they wanted Paul George or Jimmy Butler at the trade deadline. That reason is evident in their second-round series against the Wizards, who have given Boston a run for their money in conference semis.
Both the Rockets and the Spurs have visible deficiencies. San Antonio is markedly worse when Leonard is off the floor. And while Houston has the firepower to hold its own with the MVP caliber guard on the pine, they just don’t have the star power to match the Warriors tit for tat in a seven-game series.
This season has provided some remarkable moments for basketball fans.
Russell Westbrook went on an absolute tear, likely snagging MVP honors and a collection of records in the process. Isaiah Thomas has been an incredible story, both in the regular season and in the playoffs. Leonard may very well have morphed into the best NBA player in the world, and Harden and Mike D’Antoni became a match made in heaven.
But the end result remains the same. It looks like the Cavs and Warriors will meet for a record third straight time in the Finals. And while this season may have been one of the most entertaining, that’s something we knew all along.
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