Tonight marks the start of the NBA Finals, featuring the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers, two of the top teams in the league. It’s anyones guess who is gonna end up lifting the Larry O’Brien trophy at the end of the series. Here’s what you need to know about each team, including their strengths and weaknesses.
Golden State
The Warriors finished the year with the best record in the NBA, an impressive 67-15. Dub Nation is led by 2015 MVP Steph Curry, who averaged 23.8 points per game this season along with 7.7 assists. He is accompanied by big man Draymond Green, an aggressive power forward who was one of the top defenders this year, and Klay Thompson, a shooting guard who has the ability to shoot the lights out any given night. Head coach Steve Kerr is only in his first year, and he already has this young Warriors team in the Finals.
Strength – 3-point shooting. The Warriors are lethal from behind the line, with Curry and Thompson shooting .4343 and .439 from 3-point land, respectively. Golden State also has veteran Andre Iguodala, swingman Harrison Barnes, and Green to splash threes. If the Cavaliers aren’t careful, the Warriors can get hot from deep and go on a run too big to overcome.
Weakness – Rebounding. This Warriors team is somewhat of a small one. Andrew Bogut is a 7-foot center, but Green is somewhat small for the power forward position, at 6’7″. An interesting matchup will be Green and Cavaliers forward Tristan Thompson, who has a knack with rebounding. If Green and co. can not keep the Cavs off the boards, there could be trouble in the Bay Area.
Cleveland
The Cavs, although banged up this postseason, are probably the hottest team in basketball, only losing two games this postseason. Lebron James has led Cleveland to their first NBA Finals since 2007, along with help from Thompson on the boards and J.R. Smith from behind the arc. Head Coach David Blatt does not really coach this team at all, but he will still get a ring if they win. Good for him.
Strength – Offense. Plain and simple. As much as i hate his dramatic guts, James can get by anyone in the league, so he can either drive to the bucket or kick out to Smith or Iman Shumpert for an open 3. The Warriors will need to slow down James and keep him from getting in the lane in order to have a chance to win.
Weakness – Health. Sounds weird, but its true. The Cavs already lost star Kevin Love for the playoffs, and point guard Kyrie Irving has been hobbled by a foot injury. Simply put, the Cavs can not afford anymore injuries. They are on their last leg, and need to keep it together to have a chance to knock off Golden State. Also, Lebron needs to not be a crybaby, preferably.
Picks: Warriors in 7. Can’t physically pick Lebron. Go Dubs.
Tock- Warriors in 6
Biggie- Warriors in 6
Beard- Warriors in 5
Largey- Warriors in 5
The Beantown Buzz 