1. 1. If anyone had any doubts about LeBron James
being the best basketball player on the planet, his play throughout the past
four games have effectively shut those people down. Looking back on some of the
all-time greats, I’m hard-pressed to find a player who has had a less-talented
supporting cast than James currently is working with, playing without Kyrie
Irving and Kevin Love. Jordan always had Pippen, and in some cases, Dennis
Rodman or Horace Grant, Kobe had Shaq, Bird had McHale, Abdul-Jabbar and Magic
had each other, plus James Worthy, and there are countless other examples.
LeBron has who? So far, the second-best guy on the Cavs has been Matthew
Dellavedova, and Delly has put in amazing work, but doesn’t even begin to
approach the talent levels of those previously mentioned. Essentially on his
own, James has surpassed even the highest expectations, setting a record for
most points through three Finals games, with 123, surpassing legends such as
Rick Barry, Jerry West, and His Airness himself, Jordan. When LeBron knows he
has to score, he puts his head down and finds a way into the paint, despite
facing triple teams at some points when the defense collapsed on him. His
basketball IQ and court awareness have been exhibited expertly, making passes
across the court while falling out of bounds, crazy elusive behind-the-back
tosses, and creating smart plays in transition. Despite a poor game 4 in which
he was affected by a head injury after a run-in with a camera, LeBron still
showed the type of toughness and grit coaches dream about. Averaging a
ridiculous 45.75 minutes per game, James has cemented his status as an all-time
great during these past four games.
2. 2. An MVP is expected to surpass the performance of
all of those around him. He should be the most reliable player, and no time
more so than the Finals. The Finals should be the place for the MVP to show the
whole league exactly why they chose him. Not only has Stephen Curry failed to
do this, but also he has even elicited some talk as to whether he deserved the
prestigious accolade in the first place. By winning this year’s MVP, Curry is
no longer ‘The Next Big Thing’, he should just be ‘The Big Thing’, so the fact
that he’s getting outplayed is concerning. Particularly in games 2 and 3, Curry
was not present, unable to shake Dellavedova’s defense and disappearing at
times, doing a poor job of getting to the hoop, directing the offense, but
especially shooting the 3, which has been established as not just his
specialty, but his greatest competitive advantage. In game 3, Curry went 1/11
from beyond the arc, and didn’t start hitting the shots he needed to as the
leader of the team until the fourth quarter – and even then his effort wasn’t
enough to overcome the sizable Cavaliers lead. A much improved performance in
Game 4 went a long way in quieting the doubters for now, but as the series
comes to end, Curry must establish his dominance if he wants to be considered
in the same conversation as James.
3. 3. Before these Finals, Matthew Dellavedova was a
relative unknown. Maybe you’d seen him come off the bench while Kyrie was less
seriously injured earlier in the playoffs, maybe you’d seen his name come up
during broadcasts, or if you’re a really serious hoops junkie, maybe you even
remember him from his record-breaking days in a St. Mary’s uniform. Regardless
of how cognizant you were of him before these Finals, Delly has made one thing
clear; everyone will know his name by the time these Finals are through. His
defense on Stephen Curry, an incredibly difficult assignment, has been
stifling,, at least in Games 2 and 3. Delly stuck to Curry like glue, making
sure to pester and bother him all night, both nights, throwing his shot off and
ensuring that he got few good looks. Curry’s got deadly handles, but Delly has
rarely been tripped up by them, meaning he has fared better than All-Star Chris
Paul, who showed up on memes for days after Curry broke his ankles earlier this
season. On offense, Delly has been clutch, hitting insane circus shots and,
importantly, diving for loose balls with both frequency and vigor, a sign of
true hustle and dedication. I mean, the man works so hard he had to go to the
hospital after Game 3! Whatever the outcome of the series, Dellavedova
performance will be talked about for years to come.
4.
4. Andre Iguodala, who by normal standards should
be declining by age 31, has been the spark throughout the series for Golden
State. Iguodala has been asked to do a lot this year, from coming off the bench
(despite always starting in his previous 10 seasons) for the good of the team
to having to be a veteran presence to a mostly young Warriors team. Iggy has
been good all series, draining corner 3s, creating turnovers, and absolutely
demolishing the rim any time he gets to be the one to finish the fast break.
However, Iguodala had his best game in Game 4, where he lead the Warriors with 22
points. But Iguodala’s biggest contributions came on the defensive side of the
ball. Very few men can say that they went up against LeBron James and had a
good time of it, and even fewer can say that they did this in the NBA Finals.
Iguodala, however, can say that at least for one night, he went up against King
James and won. Iggy’s tight defense kept LeBron honest and contributed
to his shooting struggles and frustration as the game went on. Throughout the
past four games, it’s become evident that Iguodala is no mere bench player:
he’s been the Warriors’ heart.
5.
5. Tristan Thompson has become a classic example in
proving that stat sheets don’t tell the whole story. While Thompson has
struggled to find the bottom of the net: he only put up 2 points a piece in Games
1 and 2, and his high this series has been 12, his performance on the boards
has been classic. Averaging 13.75 boards per game, with many of those coming on
offense to create second chance opportunities, Thompson has been crucial to
Cavs’ success, and could be seeing some more money in the near future for his
efforts.
6.
6. When David Lee was first benched in favor of
Draymond Green, despite earning over $15 million a year, the outpouring of
jokes and memes was both loud and large. As dismaying as that sounds, it might
be better than when all the joking stopped, signifying that Lee was officially
an afterthought, both the people, and as it turned out, the Warriors. In the
Western Conference Finals, Lee averaged about 4.5 minutes per game, garnering
little attention. In the Finals, however, his timely decision-making, which has
been questionable in the past, and his veteran presence have lead to both his
increased minutes and production. Whether you think he’s a joke or not, Lee has
been able to make legitimate contributions to this series.
7.
7. Defense really does win championships. From
Delly’s shutdown performances in Games 2 and 3, to Iguodala’s career defensive
night against LeBron, the performances on the defensive side of the ball have
really made all the difference. My prediction is that whoever is able to keep
the most pressure on when the other team has the ball, particularly in the
fourth quarter, will end up winning the series.
8.
8. The last thing that I’ve learned from Games 1-4
of this series is that this Cavaliers-Warriors finals could go down as one of
the best Finals series of all time. Leaving out Game 4, which seems to be an anomaly
as the margin of victory was 13 points higher than the second-largest margin,
the games have been incredibly close and evenly matched. All sorts of
TV-perfect drama has ensued: a last-minute comeback denied (Game 3), two
overtime games, multiple 40-point performances, the emergence of a nobody to
stardom, a veteran coming through in a big way, and a King displaying his
wrath. If the down-to-the-wire scores and the superb play continue, this series
will certainly go down in history books as one of the greatest ever.
