The Cleveland Cavaliers can harp on all the negatives from their crushing Game 1 overtime loss. A cavalcade of devastating events conceals a silver lining: They opened the NBA Finals by playing the Golden State Warriors evenly, on the road, for 48 minutes.
Thursday's chaotic opener will be remembered for the officials reversing a crucial charging foul into a blocking foul on LeBron James. It will be momentarily recalled for George Hill missing a potential game-winning free throw with ticks remaining. That memory will quickly make way for when JR Smith picked the worst time imaginable to not shoot the basketball.
Anyone who only observed the 124-114 outcome will assume the game met expectations of a lopsided matchup, but Cleveland came inches away from pulling off an upset. One school of thought will declare that, after weathering an early storm, the Warriors will put their deflated opponents out of their misery. Or perhaps the Cavs, fueled by superhuman play from James, will provide a tougher obstacle than anticipated.
Sunday's Game 2 will struggle to match the initial installment's frenzied drama, but it could be the difference between fans buckling up for a classic series or peeking ahead to Golden State's championship parade.
Game 2: Cleveland Cavaliers at Golden State Warriors
When: Sunday, June 3 at 8 p.m. ET
TV: ABC
Live Stream: ABC.com
Odds (via OddsShark): Warriors -11.5
Can Shaun Livingston Revive the Death Lineup?
Nobody will feel sympathy for the Warriors for missing Andre Iguodala. As important as he's proved to be in their recent success, he's the fifth-best player on a superteam with four other All-Stars.
They still miss him all the same. As NBA.com's John Schuhmann noted, Iguodala's presence was a major factor in last year's title clash:
John Schuhmann @johnschuhmannNote from last year's Finals w/ Iguodala injury in mind... Iguodala on floor: GSW +60 in 141 minutes. Iguodala off floor: CLE +26 in 99 minutes.
Rewind another two years to their inaugural title meeting, and the forward received 2015 Finals MVP honors, in part for his ability to contain James, who single-handedly kept Cleveland alive with 51 points, eight rebounds and eight assists Thursday. Kevin Durant, who ceded 30 points to James, failed to fill the defensive void.
The 34-year-old is unlikely to return from knee soreness Sunday. On Friday, per The Athletic's Anthony Slater, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said Iguodala is "feeling a little bit better" but would "probably call him doubtful" for Game 2.
A bench deep with big men has expanded the magnitude of the perimeter player's absence. After scoring two points in 10 minutes, Nick Young is averaging 2.9 points per postseason game with a 34.1 field-goal percentage. Patrick McCaw logged four of his nine playoff minutes Thursday, but the 22-year-old is unlikely to be trusted with meaningful championship playing time.
That leaves an opening to share the court with Golden State's four stars. When Iguodala joined them to form an enhanced Death Lineup, the unit outscored its foes by 57 points over 110 postseason minutes.
Kerr waited until overtime to unveil his optimal alternative. Shaun Livingston had not played with Durant, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green until that point, when the group tallied 17 points to Cleveland's seven.
The backup guard made all four shot attempts over 18 minutes to notch 10 points, matching his highest output since Game 1 of the second round. He even limited James to two points on six guarded possessions.
Having not played more than 25 minutes in a game this season or in the postseason, the 6'7" guard gives Kerr a turbo boost he must deploy strategically. He should at least give that unit some regulation exposure Sunday.
JR Smith Shoots for Redemption
Smith's costly miscue has absorbed all the attention, but it's far from his first underwhelming moment this postseason.
The fickle guard, who went scoreless once in all three Eastern Conference rounds, has recorded 8.6 points per playoff game with a 35.3 field-goal percentage. On a Thursday that will go down in personal infamy, Golden State outscored Cleveland by 22 points during his 39 minutes on the court.
Despite his error, Cavs coach Ty Lue stated his support for Smith, per USA Today's Michael Singer: "JR can shake off anything, and when everybody tends to count J.R. out, that's when he comes through."
As detailed by Bleacher Report's Greg Swartz, Cleveland has little choice but to stand by Smith, who offers a better combination of shooting and defense than any of its other supporting players.
"At his best, he's an athletic, 6'6" shooting guard whom Lue has previously described as the team's best perimeter defender," Swartz wrote. "He's capable of heating up from deep like few others in the league can, actively seeking contested shots and difficult situations."
Cleveland needs the good Smith to show up Sunday. He briefly emerged in the second round, draining 10-of-13 three-pointers in a sweep over the Toronto Raptors. The Cavs, who scored 118.5 points per game in that series, have averaged 97.4 in their other 15 playoff contests.
James won't score 50 points every game, so someone beyond him and Kevin Love must significantly surpass expectations for Cleveland to shock Golden State. There's nobody more capable than Smith of suddenly unlocking a higher gear.
All statistics courtesy of NBA.com unless otherwise noted.
Read Again Brow https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2779120-nba-finals-2018-cavaliers-vs-warriors-game-2-tv-schedule-live-stream-and-oddsBagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "NBA Finals 2018: Cavaliers vs. Warriors Game 2 TV Schedule, Live Stream and Odds"
Post a Comment