Game 5 Halftime Post

CLE 61 GSW 61

Welcome in to the halftime post of game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors where it is all tied up at 61.

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GSW: Klay Thompson, 26 points, 8-12 shooting, 6 three pointers. Two straight games that Klay Thomspon is showing up big and in a potential championship-clinching game, he is putting the Warriors behind his back. Just like Curry, his range is unbelievable and it showed in the 2nd quarter. Whatever good defense the Cavs put on Thompson beyond the arc, he's absolutely killing them with better offense

CLE: LeBron James, 25 points, 9 rebounds, 10-17 shooting. Great players find ways to put their teams on their back. With Draymond Green gone, LeBron is having a field day against the Warriors' semi-vulnerable defense, being aggressive to the basket and trusting his jumpshot more.

CLE: Kyrie Irving, 18 points, 8-10 shooting. Kyrie continues to show up after finding his groove in game 3. The Cavs will need to rely on him too to break the deadlock.

GSW: Andre Iguodala, 10 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 4-8 shooting. Last year's Finals MVP is getting another opportunity to start in the finals and he's gone off to a good start. He's filled in admirably in Draymond Green's absence on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball.

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CLE: Turnovers. 11 turnovers for the Cavaliers. This Warriors defense shouldn't be too scrappy without Draymond's presence, but Cleveland continues to foil under pressure when the Warriors start trapping. They have to take better care of the ball if they want to send this series back to Cleveland.

GSW: Harrison Barnes, 3 points. Before his 3-pointer at the half, Barnes has been held in check. He's played well in these finals so far and he is the Warriors' X-factor besides their deep bench. The Warriors need to give him more open opportunities to get going offensively.

Bottom Line

CLE: Continue to run the offense through LeBron and Irving. Like I said, James is having a field day without Draymond Green in the lineup and he has to stay aggressive for the series to shift back to Cleveland.

GSW: Ride Klay Thompson while he's hot. He's on pace to break Ray Allen's records for most 3-pointers in a single game in the NBA Finals. Hopefully, the other Splash Brother (Steph Curry) gets his shot involved more. The rest of the team has to answer to the challenge and put the Cavs away for good.