OAKLAND — For the second time in three years, the Golden State Warriors are NBA champions.
The Warriors got their revenge after a year of “3-1” jokes on Monday night at Oracle Arena, outlasting the Cavs 129-120 in Game 5 to clinch the franchise’s fifth NBA championship in 70 seasons. This marks the first time a Bay Area team has clinched a championship at home since 1974.
Kevin Durant, the all-world reinforcement brought in after last season’s heartbreak, came up big in the biggest game of his career, dropping 39 points on 14-20 from the field, adding seven rebounds and five assists. Put simply, he was a monster.
Andre Iguodala, Golden State’s MVP in the 2015 Finals, was nearly as important, finishing with a game-high plus-minus of +18, and throwing down a game-changing dunk in the second quarter, when the Warriors were looking primed to fumble away another Game 5 at home. Iguodala was also tasked with guarding LeBron James for much of the game, who had an all-world performance, finishing with 41 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists.
Steph Curry was excellent in his own right, finishing his best NBA Finals to date with a line of 34 points, six rebounds and 10 assists.
After an unstoppable performance in Game 4, LeBron James and Kyrie Irving again busted out of the gate like men with their seasons on the line, each scoring 12 points in the first 12 minutes. Durant and Curry combined for 20 of their own, but also contributed five turnovers in the opening frame.
The Warriors went small early (with six minutes remaining in the quarter) and were punished down low, giving up 18 early points in the paint. Despite being outshot 62.5 percent to 41.7 percent from the field, Golden State kept itself in it by going 11-14 from the line, finishing the first stanza down just 37-33.
The Warriors continued to miss wide open looks in the second quarter, starting off 2-of-11 from deep. The entire tone of the game changed with eight minutes remaining in the half, however, when Iguodala slammed home a tomahawk dunk in transition reminiscent of Dr. J. The previously nervous Oracle Arena crowd went absolutely nuts.
No block this time pic.twitter.com/qJoK7lvx3U
— KNBR (@KNBR) June 13, 2017
The play proved to be a turning point, sparking a 28-4 run for the Warriors. When the smoke cleared Golden State led 60-45, and a skirmish ensued.
David West, J.R. Smith and Tristan Thompson all get slapped with technical fouls for this kerfuffle #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/f2BxzwtxDj
— KNBR (@KNBR) June 13, 2017
A late 8-2 run to close the half, including another wild Smith three-pointer, put the Cavs within 11 at halftime, as Golden State outscored Cleveland 38-23 in the quarter.
The third quarter is typically where the Warriors step on their opponents’ throat. That was not the case in Game 5 as Cavs won the third quarter 33-27, cutting the Golden State lead to five (98-93), heading into the fourth quarter.
Durant opened the final quarter with a bang, putting a stamp on the greatest playoff series of his career with five points and an assist in the first two minutes.
Durant is unstoppable, shooting 77.7 percent from the field pic.twitter.com/3Gv9BZ26kn
— The Ringer (@ringer) June 13, 2017
KD continued to lead the charge, finishing with 11 points in the quarter, helping Golden State to end the series 4-1 with a 31-27 final frame.