CLEVELAND — The confident Warriors and the anxious Cavaliers took the floor Tuesday at Quicken Loans Arena, holding practice sessions and interviews before Wednesday night’s Game 3.
Many had pegged this year’s NBA Finals as a budding classic between two basketball titans. It would settle the debate over whether the Warriors are a legitimate dynasty, or whether LeBron James truly still is the King. Six or seven games was nearly every expert’s prediction.
Instead, the Warriors very well could have champagne sitting on ice outside the locker room for Friday night’s Game 4.
One of the major storylines developing in Cleveland is why James and the Cavaliers have had so many defensive breakdowns. The schemes they drew up in the film room on defense to slow down the Warriors are flawed. LeBron himself has been a major culprit on that end of the floor. The Cavaliers have been successfully bottling up Steph Curry and Klay Thompson at the three-point line, but the rest of the Warriors have been leaking out of the sides of the defense. There’s so much space for everyone else to operate.
Something’s got to change.
When asked about these adjustments, Draymond Green said he doesn’t expect Cleveland to leave him wide open in Game 3. But just in case they’re listening, Green is daring the Cavaliers to repeat the same strategy.
Two nights after torching the Cleveland defense for 28 points on a bevy of uncontested shots, the Warriors forward is anticipating that his opponent will respect his jump shot. Green hit five threes in Game 2; Kyrie Irving, J.R. Smith, Kevin Love and Channing Frye have combined for four three-pointers all series.
“I’m sure I’m not going to be as open as I was,” Green said.
If the Cavaliers do indeed shift their focus more toward Green in Game 3, it will almost guarantee Curry and Thompson more open looks. The sharpshooters’ uncharacteristically low scoring totals in Games 1 and 2 have been one of the more startling storylines of the NBA Finals, but it hasn’t impacted Golden State in the slightest. Curry is averaging 14.5 pointer per game so far in the series, while Thompson’s at 13.0.
Whether or not Cleveland will abandon operation Shutdown Splash Brothers is a decision Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue is still publicly wrestling with.
“It’s hard to try to double-team Iguodala or Harrison Barnes in the post when you have Steph and Klay and you’ve got to rotate to those guys,” Lue said. “They put you at some disadvantages.”
The mood obviously isn’t as tense on the Warriors’ side.
Golden State’s 2-0 lead seems appears to be insurmountable, or at the very least commanding, if you prefer to temper enthusiasm. But keep in mind the Warriors have lost every Game 3 of this 2016 NBA postseason — a turnover-fest cost them in Houston, Damian Lillard went off in Portland and the Thunder demolished Golden State 133-105 back in Oklahoma City last round.
An NBA playoff series can pivot quickly. A Game 3 loss would put some of the pressure back on Golden State’s shoulders.
“I think we’ve had a couple of Game 3s where maybe we let our guard down, up 2-0 type thing,” Steve Kerr said. “Last year we lost here in Game 3. I remember that. I don’t think there is a common denominator. We’ve just got to come out and play better.”
There is a common denominator between Oklahoma City and Cleveland: a raucous and desperate home crowd. Forget what happened in a 132-98 regular season January drubbing: the Cavaliers are not going to get blown out on their home court. Cleveland has yet to lose a home playoff game in 2016 and similarly to the Warriors, they’ve been able to channel the energy into three-point shooting. The Warriors know Kyrie Irving will score more than 10 points on Wednesday and they know role players like J.R. Smith and Channing Frye play much better in front of the home crowd.
“I’ve always said the best feeling in the world is to quiet another team’s crowd,” Green said. “So that right there alone is always motivation to go out and do great on another team’s floor.”
The question is whether Green will get the chance to silence this crowd with his shooting stroke. Cleveland will have to pick its poison.