Kevin Durant Rallies Warriors for Game 3 Win Over Cavs

Welcome in to the full recap of Game 3 of the 2017 NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers where Kyrie Irving and LeBron James made this game interesting with big time performances. But, the Warriors proved to be too much as they came back to beat the champs 118-113 behind Kevin Durant and the Splash Bros.

This will probably be the only good game in this series. The Cavs gave the Warriors everything they got. But, you can't deny these Warriors are just way too OP (overpowering). LeBron and Kyrie gave em hell, but the effort was just futile at the end of the day. The Cavs just look helpless after suffering a crushing defeat in this game.

Cleveland Cavaliers

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Kyrie Irving, 38 points, 16-29 shooting. To quote the commentator from NBA Jam say: "Razzle Dazzle!" The Harlem Globetrotters could use his services. Irving put on a clinic with a lot of moves and circus shots when getting to the basket. He put the degree of difficulty on full display tonight.

LeBron James, 39 points, 11 rebounds, 9 assists. No description necessary as to how LeBron played in front of the home crowd. He got his way aggressively attacking the basket, overpowering all kinds of Warriors players in his way.

J.R. Smith, 16 points, 5-10 shooting. The Cavs could use more role players like J.R. Smith to step up. After being a non-factor for the most part in this series, he lit it up tonight from deep. This should be a huge confidence builder as the Cavs look to salvage some pride in Game 4.

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Fouls. For a losing team, I thought this was the only negative from the Cavs and it proved to be costly in the long run. Throughout the game, the Cavs just made a bunch of silly fouls to put the Warriors on the free throw line early. You don't want to give the Warriors any easy points and questionable foul committing from the team played an intricate role in the loss.

Golden State Warriors

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Kevin Durant, 31 points, 8 rebounds. No, he's not Harrison Barnes. Great players come up big in the clutch moments and K.D. was that player for the Warriors. It seemed that the Game 3 curse in Cleveland would continue for the Warriors, but Durant was great from start to finish. He kept the momentum alive for the Warriors when it looked like the game was gonna spiral out of control in the Cavs' favor.

Klay Thompson, 30 points, 11-16 shooting. Encore from Klay after a sensational Game 2 performance. Klay is living up to the X-Factor role and once he goes unconscious and scores, you can kiss any chance of beating the Warriors goodbye.

Stephen Curry, 26 points, 13 rebounds. Curry's starting to become a double-double machine all of a sudden. But, as long as this guy's involved in any way shape or form bodes well for the Warriors. He's not back-to-back MVP for no reason.

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Turnovers. I find it funny since Steve Kerr came back to coach, the Warriors started to turn the ball over frequently. Luckily enough, the 3-ball game was working for them to overshadow this negative.

Draymond Green, 8 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists. Don't get me wrong, this is a solid stat line for Green. But, I thought Draymond was too conservative, putting all his focus on getting players involved. He took the first shot in the first possession in the game and he was quiet from there on out. Not to mention, he found himself again in early foul trouble.

Conclusion

For the Cavs, it's a lot different coming back from a 3-0 deficit than coming back from 3-1. If they were a hockey team, it's possible. But like I said, this has got to be a soul crushing defeat for the Cavs. They spend all their energy on this one game and they came up short. As much as people would like to say this series is far from over because of last year, this series is done. For the Warriors, finishing the postseason 16-0 is perfect compensation for them after failing to win a title last year when they won 73 games in the regular season. No question, they want to continue to put their foot on the gas. I'll see you guys for Game 4 on Friday. 

2017 NBA Finals - Game 3: Golden State Warriors @ Cleveland Cavaliers 2nd Half Open Thread and Discussion

The 2nd half of game 3 of the 2017 NBA Finals. As usual, leave a comment below to share your thoughts on the game.

Q4

GSW 118 CLE 113

Wow, what a quarter. Credit to the Cavs for putting up one heck of a fight. Although LeBron and Kyrie put on a scoring clinic and many of the Cavs' supporting cast stepping up, there's just too many weapons on this Warriors' squad. Clutch buckets from Kevin Durant. Andre Iguodala with the defensive play of the game to prevent a potential game tying three from LeBron. The Warriors are one win away from redemption. Stay tuned for the full recap.

Q3

GSW 89 CLE 94

The Cavaliers didn't have an avalanche like the Warriors did in the first two games at Oracle. But, you gotta give them credit for fighting hard in this quarter. The champs are not going down so easily on their home floor. LeBron, Kyrie, and K-Love showed that this quarter. Kevin Love's fighting for the rebounds to give the Cavs some extra possessions. Kyrie Irving is putting together a lot of highlights in this quarter. The Cavs are playing like the defending champions so far in this 2nd half. They have to sustain that in the 4th quarter to get on the board in these finals.

2017 NBA Finals - Game 3: Golden State Warriors @ Cleveland Cavaliers 1st Half Open Thread and Discussion

Welcome to the first half of game 3 of the 2017 NBA Finals between the Cavs and the Dubs. Leave a comment below and share your thoughts on the game.

Q2

GSW 67 CLE 61

The Cavs needed some momentum to have towards the 2nd half with Kyrie Irving's buzzer beating shot. It's rained threes, but it also rained turnovers for the Warriors in this 1st half. They are shooting 60% from deep. This was a complete 180 from last year's for them. The Warriors were too slow generating offense, but this year, they've shook off a possible fast start by Cleveland to get back in this game and take control for the most part. We can't disregard the Cavs' effort though. They're putting better defensive pressure up on the Warriors and they are playing their pace in attacking the basket. LeBron and Kyrie, of course, are instrumental to keeping this game close. LeBron came out of the gate firing like he usually does. Kyrie is off to a slow start again, but he picked it up in this quarter, settling for more layups. The Warriors' length defensively continue to frustrate him much to their credit. We've seen this narrative in the last two games. Both teams end the first half with a close game, but the Warriors end up turning on the jets in the 2nd half. Can the Cavaliers do the same? They need the pace in the 2nd half to favor them early on. 2nd half will open up shortly.

Q1

GSW 39 CLE 32

Talk about a quick turn of events. If the Cavs are desperate for a win, they have to be more aggressive. They started off good, trapping Curry and putting a lot of defensive pressure on the ball. LeBron is doing his thing. J.R. Smith showed up big this quarter. But, the Warriors raining threes have been the problem. Thompson and Durant quickly turned the odds into the Warriors' favor. With LeBron going to the bench, Curry's started getting hot and the Warriors are catching the Cavs napping on defense with a couple of easy baskets. That's why they have the lead right now.

NBA Finals Game 2 Blog Coverage Canceled

Sorry for the inconvenience people, but I won't be covering today's Game 2 matchup of the 2017 NBA Finals. I have a family matter to attend to that's happening at the same start time as the game and most likely, it will take up a majority of the game. I'll see you guys for Game 3 when the series shifts to Cleveland.

Durant, Curry Help Warriors Hammer Cavs in Game 1

Welcome in to the full recap of game 1 of the 2017 NBA Finals between the Warriors and the Cavaliers where the Warriors went wire-to-wire to take an early 1-0 lead in these finals with a resounding 90-113 win.

At last, this "3-match" is underway. Well, the first half of this game lived up to the billing as the "rubber match." Both teams were neck and neck, but once the Warriors get going, there's no stopping that well-oiled machine. And a red hot duo of Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry spelled doom for the Cavaliers. This was a typical example of the tale of two halves.

Cleveland Cavaliers

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LeBron James, 28 points, 15 rebounds. The 8 turnovers from James is a smear from his performance. He was essentially the Cavs' only offense in the first half of this game. Again, despite the turnovers, it was a typical stat-stuffing performance from LeBron.

Kyrie Irving, 24 points. It was evident that Irving was off to a slow start in the first half. He still finished strong with the aforementioned 24 points. Kyrie did his thing in attacking the basket and wiggling his way around Curry and Klay. I'd say that 4-point play in the 2nd quarter got him going in this game.

Kevin Love, 15 points, 21 rebounds. With the way K-Love's been playing in these playoffs, this was not his best game scoring-wise. However, he did crash the boards and leading the team in rebounding and in blocks, notching 3 of them.

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Turnovers. 20-4 ratio in terms of the turnovers from both teams, but the Cavs crumbled under the Warriors' defensive pressure. Ball security is certainly going to be a point of emphasis for this team in Game 2.

Tristan Thompson, 0 points, 4 rebounds. If Thompson can have his way in the boards against Bogut, he can have his way against Pachulia. That was not the case today. His rebounding activity was non-existent all game long.

Golden State Warriors

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Kevin Durant, 38 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists. Welcome back to the NBA Finals KD! If there's any indication that he wants that ring, this is the game. He put on an absolute dunk fest over the Cavs defense tonight. But most importantly, he brought some much-needed defensive activity during this game with his length and athleticism.

Stephen Curry, 28 points, 6 three-pointers, 10 assists. If the Warriors had this Curry in game 7 last year, they would've won it. This is the confidence builder that he needs to show up big in this third installment of the Cavs-Dubs finals. As soon as he got hot in the 2nd half, consider it a wrap for the Warriors.

Zaza Pachulia, 8 points, 6 rebounds. Zaza "Houdini!" He had a couple of highlight plays, just throwing up the basketball. Lucky for him, a lot of those circus shots went in.

Ball security. As mentioned, 20-4 was the turnover ratio for both teams. What a difference a year made for the Warriors.

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Klay Thompson, 3-16 shooting. Warriors fans have to put a missing label for Klay Thompson's scoring in milk cartons. I labeled him as an X-factor for these finals. There's no problem for Klay defensively, but he's playing like Harrison Barnes last year, struggling with his shot.

Conclusion

Does Kevin Durant's presence differentiate this Warriors team from the historic 73-9 roster? That is certainly so. Even though it's just one game, you can definitely see the difference from a year ago. This Warriors team is loaded with so many weapons on the offensive end. For the Cavs, Oracle Arena has been brutal to them outside of Games 5 and 7 last year. No question, the turnovers played a key role in their loss tonight. Game 2 will decide where this series is gonna go. If it tilts in favor of the Cavs, this is a series. If it tilts in favor of the Warriors, this gonna be a short series with no blown 3-1 lead this time. I'll see you guys on Sunday for Game 2. 

2017 NBA Finals - Game 1: Cleveland Cavaliers @ Golden State Warriors 2nd Half Open Thread and Discussion

The 2nd half of Cavs-Dubs III, game 1. As usual, leave a comment below this post to share your thoughts on the game.

Q4

CLE 90 GSW 113

And this 2nd half is mercifully over. Curry and Durant pretty much put the clamps down on the Cavs and the Cavs just had no answer. The Warriors complete the 3-peat in striking first in these finals. They remain perfect in this postseason. Stay tuned for the full recap.

Q3

CLE 72 GSW 93

The Warriors would erupt eventually. Kevin Durant has done a majority of the damage and Steph Curry is in "Human Torch" form. That is one thing the Cavs didn't want to see and this quarter became really similar to the Martin Luther King day rematch between these two when the Warriors went on a crazy run before the 2nd half. This quarter was yet another Golden State clinic.

2017 NBA Finals - Game 1: Cleveland Cavaliers @ Golden State Warriors 1st Half Open Thread and Discussion

It's here. This is the first half of game 1 of the 2017 NBA Finals, Cavs-Dubs III. Leave a comment below this post and share your thoughts on the game and certain highlight plays that blew your mind.

Q2

CLE 52 GSW 60

Talk about an epic first half. Both teams are living up and certainly the stars are living up to the billing. LeBron and Durant leading the way for their respective teams. Who says these two don't want it more? James is leading the Cavaliers already with a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds. He continues his postseason dominance, but he's gonna need a lot more help. Luckily for James, Kyrie Irving stepped up more in this 2nd quarter. They're gonna need more output. Kevin Love has been quiet. Tristan Thompson is not active. And none of the key role players are stepping in. For the Warriors, Kevin Durant is like a kid who's ecstatic about being in "candy land." He's leading Golden State with 23 points and he's looking at the Cavs' defense in slow motion with so many highlight dunks. Steph Curry had a solid outing out there and lucky for the Cavs, he hasn't gone off yet. Klay Thompson and Draymond Green so far have disappointed on offense. They're doing their jobs defensively but Green has still yet to make a shot and Thompson is really in a bad funk. They need to pick it up if the Warriors want to pull away from this game early. Verdict for Cavs-Warriors III? So far, so good! Let's see what the 2nd half unfolds.

Q1

CLE 30 GSW 35

This is only game 1 of the 2017 NBA Finals and it already feels like a game 7! Both teams are into it. The Warriors fans inside Oracle Arena couldn't stop making noise. The intensity is there as expected of an epic trilogy. With the Cavs and the Warriors setting all kinds of records on offense, you'd think one would have a fast start over the other. But, they're pretty even during that quarter. If you're an NBA fan, you gotta enjoy that first quarter. A surreal atmosphere shown inside Oracle arena.