The sun came up the East today in Cleveland, but the gloom did not burn off like the morning fog.
No Friday has ever felt like the one the poor folks in Cleveland had to endure. After being one shot away from a Game 1 victory, after watching Kyrie Irving do a little of everything — nothing bigger than his block of Stephen Curry’s layup attempt with 25 seconds left in regulation — after getting almost nothing from their bench yet still having a chance to make a statement victory, overtime happened in Game 1.
Everything that could go wrong did go wrong, and Kyrie Irving will not be walking through that door to save the day. Not on crutches.
Is there any city more snakebit than Cleveland? Is there any superstar who is having to endue the kind of beating LeBron James is taking today despite his 44 points — only two of which came in overtime, and which also happened to be the only two points Cleveland scored in the extra period, coming with just a few seconds left in the game after the Warriors seized control early in the extra 5 minutes and pretty much coasted the rest of the way.
Even our own Paul Ladewski, who covered Michael Jordan’s six championships with the Bulls when he was based in Chicago, couldn’t help but wonder: Was the step-back 23-footer that LeBron took at the end of regulation really the best shot he could manage? Is that the type of shot that Jordan would have taken?
Such is the peril of being named LeBron James. We have already been over the premature discussion of his legacy, and how he has accomplished enough over the past five years to cement his spot as one of the all-time greats. But with the ball in his hands and the game on the line, he is expected to be the hero. And if not then, than in the overtime, when he ceased being aggressive offensively and let the Warriors seize the momentum.
And the thing about seizing the momentum is this: Every year, postseason after postseason, there is one playoff series that is decided in Game 1. You can’t really say that has happened in the 2015 postseason, but this might have been the one.
So many ifs …
If LeBron has taken the ball to the hole on the clearout at the end of regulation …
If Iman Shumpert’s put-back jumper has two more inches of lift on it …
If overtime hadn’t happened and Kyrie Irving hadn’t been forced to play the couple extra minutes during which he re-injured his knee …
OK, this is all a little overly melodramatic, I’ll acknowledge that.
But things look bleak for Cleveland. There is no replacing Irving, but Matthew Dellavedova will have to be a reasonable facsimile in order for the Cavs to have a chance in Game 2, where they have opened as 7 1/2 point underdogs. He had a goose egg in the points column Thursday night as Golden State’s reserves outscored Cleveland’s 34-9. (More on Cleveland’s lack of bench production here).
One question heading into Game 2 is whether David Blatt shifts J.R. Smith into the starting lineup and brings Iman Shumpert off the bench. That would risk sacrificing defense against Klay Thompson for another offensive-minded player, but if you are Blatt, why not take a heat check with J.R. and see what you get? The Cavs do not want to fall into a double-digit hole in Game 2, and it is going to take more than a little tinkering to field a lineup that can keep pace with Golden State’s offense.
More on Game 1 in this video with CineSport’s Noah Coslov:
Chris Sheridan is publisher and editor-in-chief of SheridanHoops.com. Follow him on Twitter.