Another day, another incredible, unprecedented nail-biter between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers. Here’s what we learned from a joyous night of basketball:
The King owns this court:
Seriously this is getting ridiculous in a hurry. 40 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists in yet another all-time performance for LeBron James. And, yet again, the Cavs needed every bit of it to win.
The totality of his game was on full display; While those around him stepped up in big moments, no other Cav even reached five assists, only Thompson managed to pull down more than five boards (he had a team-high 13 rebounds), and only one other teammate chipped in more than 10 points (Dellavedova, of course).
Moreover game 3 provided another in an unprecedented line of Finals performances thus far.
https://twitter.com/cthomasbattle/status/608624459403157504
He was one rebound away from registering his 36th playoff game in which he led his team in points, rebounds, and assists. The 35 times he’s done it already is an NBA record. Second-best? Larry Bird. With 13.
James played 46 of a possible 48 minutes in game 3, bringing his series average to an absurd 48.1 minutes per game
As NBA.com’s Lang Whitaker noted:
Between Games 1 and 2, after it was learned that Irving was done for the series, James was asked how many minutes he could play in a Finals game.
“40, 41, 42,” he said. “In regular season pace, I can give you all 48. I play extremely hard throughout the postseason, and I’d be cheating my team if I said I could go out and play 48 minutes. I think that’s impossible.”
Well, so much for that.
The Number:
93.9
After playing at a pace of 98.3 possessions per 48 minutes during the regular season—highest in the NBA—the Warriors have been taken out of their rhthym this series. Last night, the pace was 93.9, much closer to the Cavs season average of 92.3, which was good for 25th. As long as Cleveland continues to dictate the pace, helping to keep Golden State’s deadliest weapon at bay, it’s absolutely conceivable that they finish the job and win it all.
Late is better than never, but still not enough:
Three points in the first 30 minutes. That’s what Steph Curry brought to the table early on in game three—a decidedly un-MVP-like performance. Curry seemed passive and disengaged at times, simply helpless at others, as his team found themselves down 20 points in the third quarter.
Curry got it going late, dropping 24 of his 27 total points in the final 18 minutes—including five threes in the fourth quarter, tying a Finals record—to bring the Warriors to within one point, 80-81, with 2:45 left in the game. The Cavs responded, thanks to clutch buckets from Dellavedova and James, but it demonstrated just how quickly Curry and the Warriors can go on a run. No lead is safe against them, though with the Cavs seemingly able to solve the puzzle that is the Warriors multi-dimensional offense in a way that no team has yet this season, Golden State can’t afford to rely on late runs to bring them back into games, as has been the case throughout this series.
The Number, Part II:
31.
That’s the Warriors shooting percentage from beyond the arc this season, a drastic fall from their 39% three-point mark during the rest of the season. In the two Cleveland wins thus far, that number drops to just 29%.
The Legend of Matthew Dellavedova continues:
Once again, Dellavedova answered the call. The relentless guard is a study in how to be an effective role player: do whatever is required of you on any given night. On Sunday that meant hounding perhaps the leagues most gifted offensive player, a monk-like focus on limiting Steph Curry’s mobility off the ball and forcing the MVP into taking difficult shots.
In Tuesday’s game 3, quite simply Dellavedova was asked to be Robin to LeBron’s Batman, to be Dwyane Wade to LeBron’s LeBron— an all-but unthinkable notion just a few weeks ago. Yet here we are. For the second consecutive game, Dellavedova played effective defense on Curry, but this time he also stepped up with a major offensive effort, posting 20 points (the only non-James Cav with more than 10), including 15 in the second half. The enduring image of Delly’s game 3 will be him hurling himself to the ground diving for loose balls in a series of hustle plays, but don’t be fooled, the Cavs starting point guard did a little bit of everything in Cleveland’s 96-91 win.
No pain no gain:
First it was Iman Shumpert’s left shoulder. The Cavs guard took a hit from Golden State’s Draymond Green that re-aggravated an injury from earlier this season and caused Shumpert to leave the game in the first quarter. A crushing blow to a Cleveland team that can’t afford to lose any more bodies.
And then it was Matthew Dellavedova’s legs. The feel good story of the post-season, the undrafted point guard who’s doing it all for the Cavs, was taken to hospital following game 3 due to severe cramping. Which, let’s be real, isn’t all that surprising considering his all-in brand of basketball coupled with the fact that he’s logged an average of 40 minutes over the last two games (much of it chasing Steph Curry around screen after screen) after averaging just 21 minutes per game during both the rest of the playoffs and the regular season.
Defensive driving key for Cleveland
The Warriors never led in this game, as the Cavaliers dictating the flow of the game with their defense and timely plays on the other end of the floor. For the second consecutive game, Cleveland held Golden State to under 60 points after three quarters, something no team had even done once this season once, let alone in two straight. Yes, LeBron James is carrying a team like we’ve practically never seen before on this stage, but as a team the Cavs are doing it with defense. Hey, isn’t that what wins championships?
