Stephen Curry Comes Alive as Warriors Beat Cavs to Take 3-2 Lead

Welcome in to the full recap of game 5 of the NBA Finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors where the Warriors earn another big time win against the Cavaliers with a 91-104 victory to go up 3-2 as they are one win away from an NBA title as the series shifts back to Cleveland for game 6.

Now this is what an MVP vs. MVP type of game in the finals feels like. Both LeBron James and Stephen Curry go on a scoring barrage. LeBron with a 40 point, triple-double performance, Steph Curry with a 37 point performance. However, when it mattered the most, Curry managed to edge the King with his scoring and three point explosion in the 4th quarter. For the Warriors, it was another double-digit victory for them and their small both on both offense and defense has proven to be the best adjustment Steve Kerr has made in these finals.

Cleveland Cavaliers

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LeBron James, 40 points, 14 rebounds, 11 assists, 15-34 shooting. If there's a case to make LeBron James the Finals MVP potentially on a losing team since the logo, Jerry West in 1969, I think the way he has been performing in these finals speaks for itself. The man has put up three 40+ point performances in these finals, notched two near triple-doubles, notched two actual triple-doubles. As much of a LeBron hater as I am (although I give credit where credit is due), he's the sole reason why this Cavaliers team is alive to get past five games into these finals already. Though the Finals MVP goes to the player on the winning team, LeBron's numbers are putting it out there that he's the real Finals MVP, although it's a bitter reception if the Cavs were to lose the championship, just ask Jerry West how that feels.

Tristan Thompson, 19 points, 10 rebounds. Thompson continues to be a monster on the boards for the Cavs and he's finally hitting those free throws. I think the other constant besides LeBron in these finals has been Tristan Thompson with the way he's battling for every possession to give the Cavaliers some second chance opportunities. As long the Warriors play small, Thompson will have his way, grabbing boards and scoring from inside the paint when given the opportunity.

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J.R. Smith (2nd half). Oh, J.R. Smith, how you have fooled us all with your 2nd half shooting performance. In the first half, he was doing good, delivering some good spacing for LeBron to give him the ball for wide open three pointers. In the 2nd half, it was a whole different story as Smith couldn't hit one shot. Some of it had to do with the Warriors' defense, some of of it had to do with unlucky misses, but I thought Smith drifted away from spacing the floor to give himself a wide open shot and he's trying to make a play for himself to put the Cavs back in it. Nevertheless, Smith finished with 14 points and with another horrendous display of shooting from beyond the arc, making only 4 of those 14 attempts.

Matthew Dellavedova, 5 points, 2-9 shooting. Delly is quickly turning from a hero to a zero in the last two games. OK, scratch game 4, he was tired. But aside from generating 2-3 steals from Curry, he was getting lit up to the point of no return, especially in the 4th quarter. It doesn't help the fact that he's had another bad offensive display. Things are quickly turning for the worse for Matthew Dellavedova unless he bounces back with a heroic effort in game 6.

Golden State Warriors

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Stephen Curry, 37 points, 13-23 shooting. It's safe to say that the NBA's Most Valuable Player is alive and well this game. You talk about a much needed scoring explosion from Stephen Curry in the finals. He might've started a little slow as usual in the 1st quarter, but throughout the whole game, he was finding the range and getting in rhythm. By the time the 4th quarter hits, Curry was in Human Torch mode. You would think through every difficult three he made in that quarter, the shot was not going in, considering Dellavedova was in his face and then it goes in. Those three pointers couldn't have come at a right time for the MVP as LeBron hit a deep three pointer previously to rally the Cavs. Curry was like "anything you do LeBron, I can do better not once, but three times!" The guy is exciting and as an NBA fan, you can't contain that excitement when he just releases those three pointers and it's a picture perfect splash.

Andre Iguodala, 14 points, 5-11 shooting. He struggled in the free throw shooting game, but I've said this many times when Iguodala is on this list: there is no other player on the Warriors who wants the NBA championship more than Andre Iguodala. Since his days with the 76ers, defending LeBron full time and handling the other stacked teams in the East, he's always come up short, first round exit at best. This is the closest he's been. He doesn't have the finals experience, but it looks like he has that experience, making key plays for the Warriors, especially that and 1 late in the 4th this game to help extend the lead.

Leandro Barbosa, 13 points, 4-5 shooting. Quality playing time leads to a quality game for Barbosa. I thought Leandro Barbosa had a solid game, providing that scoring off the bench with David Lee and Shaun Livingston contributing little off the bench. He's not the sixth man player he once was, but with Iguodala in the lineup as long as the Warriors' small ball is working, I look for Barbosa to step it up and contribute quality production with the minutes he's given to retain that balanced effort that the Warriors have been demonstrating all season long given their depth.

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Turnovers. They didn't play a big part as the Warriors take this game, but especially when the game is closely contested, the turnovers hurt the Warriors. They did a good job defensively, generating turnovers from the Cavs to go on that quick start. However, they couldn't live up to their end of the bargain on the offensive end on taking care of the ball, especially when both teams were clinging to one point leads or when the game is all tied up.

Conclusion

The Warriors are one win away from capturing that elusive NBA championship. The Bay Area has been waiting 40 years for them to bring one up and they have an opportunity to do that if they close out game 6 Tuesday night in Cleveland. That game could be the biggest one for the Warriors and their young core because they've come this far and never have they been so close to hoisting the Larry O'Brien trophy. For the Cavaliers, they've been in this situation before and they have responded successfully, especially LeBron James. LeBron has been in a 3-2 deficit before in the finals and his team has won it all. Will destiny be on the Warriors side? Or will it be on the Cavaliers side as they try to force a decisive game 7? It is going to be interesting how the next game plays out. I'll see you guys for game 6.