“Tonight was the third game in five days, including the trip back from the West Coast, and it seemed to have an impact on us, yes,” Coach David Blatt responded to a question on whether the team was fatigued following a 21-point loss Thursday to the Golden State Warriors. With forward LeBron James averaging 45-plus minutes a game and guard Matthew Dellavedova playing just north of 38 minutes per contest since Game 2, many of the Cavaliers players looked tired and
CLEVELAND — When your coach says you are lacking in energy, playing with very little life … Well, there really aren’t that many harsher words that can be used, are there? But those were the phrases Steve Kerr was uttering Tuesday night to describe the NBA’s reigning MVP, Stephen Curry, who came to life in the fourth quarter of Game 3 at the NBA Finals but again made too many untimely mistakes as the Golden State Warriors fell into a 2-1 hole
Matthew Dellavedova is making a bigger name for himself in the NBA Finals than anyone could ever have imagined. In a series that was destined to show the greatness of superstars LeBron James and Stephen Curry, it’s been Dellavedova who has stolen the show with his unexpected impact on both ends of the floor, guarding Curry admirably on one end and hitting big shots for the Cleveland Cavaliers on the other. Dellavedova ended the contest with an impressive 20 points, five rebounds and four
If you’re wondering why the offense of the Cleveland Cavaliers has come to a grinding halt down the stretch of the first two games of the NBA Finals, coach David Blatt has a perfectly logical explanation. Blatt may be an NBA rookie but is somewhat of an icon in Israel, where he won five league titles, four Coach of the Year awards and the 2014 Euroleague Championship with Maccabi Tel Aviv. He is on a first name basis with Prime Minister
“Obviously you can see in the tone of my voice I’m a little bit worried.” That’s what Kyrie Irving said about his knee injury to a group of reporters just after Game 1 of the NBA Finals, and his suspicion became a worst-case scenario on Friday when the Cleveland Cavaliers announced that the point guard would miss the remainder of the games after an MRI revealed a fractured left kneecap. More from NBA.com: [Read more…]
You don’t need to look at the MRI on Kyrie Irving’s knee to know the Cleveland Cavaliers are in trouble. Just look at the boxscore. In Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Irving was better than anyone could have imagined. Bothered by a nagging sore left knee since Cleveland’s first-round series win over Boston, Irving clearly benefited from the eight-day layoff following the conference finals and rediscovered his All-Star form. Irving collected 23 points, seven rebounds and six assists in nearly 44 minutes,
After a one-week wait, the NBA Finals are here. But that’s nowhere near as long as these teams have been waiting for a championship. For the Golden State Warriors, it has been 40 years since Rick Barry led them to what many believe is the greatest upset in NBA Finals history, a four-game sweep of the Washington Bullets in 1975. For the Cleveland Cavaliers, it has been, well, forever. The Cavaliers entered the NBA in 1970 and didn’t even make the Finals
As we count down to the start of NBA Finals, there are plenty of things to focus on: LeBron James building his legacy (he is no Jerry West), the battle of rookie head coaches Steve Kerr and David Blatt, the experience issue when it comes to having played in monster games before, be they NBA playoff games or FIBA tournaments (don’t forget that Steph Curry and Klay Thompson were members of Team USA last summer). But remember something that coaches always