The Cavs were incompletely complete tonight.
The players that needed to step up tonight were everything they needed to be and then some. JR Smith hit early shots that kept the Cavs just slightly ahead of an ice cold Warriors squad. Shumpert, who went out early with a concerning arm injury, created turnovers stealing the ball three times, and Tristan Thompson put on a clinic on the offensive and defensive glass. Matthew Dellavedova continues to impress. This time his "grit", as James called it, showed on the score sheet as well as he racked up 20 huge points, providing much needed support for the King's one man show. Let's also not forget the key minutes by veterans, and fellow champions in their own right, Mike Miller and James Jones.
All you can do is watch Lebron go to work. Inside-out is how he attacked the Warriors defense tonight and he broke the record for most points in the first three games of an NBA Finals, take that Steph. Defensively he knew where Golden State would be before they did. Averaging 41 points, 12 rebounds, and 8.3 assists, LBJ is doing whatever he wants whenever he wants.
The Warriors are in a rut and the unfortunate part about jump shooting teams is that this "funk" can last for some time, especially when it's exacerbated by stifling defense. Before the second half, Curry was 6/29 over 6 quarters, yet he seemed to shake off some of the dust going 9/14 to end the game. Where was Klay Thompson? not to mention Harrison Barnes' 0 point game.
The addition of David Lee added height to try and combat the Cavaliers' offense, but the Warriors are playing too small, literally and figuratively, to beat a more physical team. Game 4 will be interesting because the Warriors got hot late. If they can return to form, it will be interesting to see how these two teams matchup against one another clicking on all cylinders.
Cavs in 6.
