2015 NBA Finals: 3 things we learned as
Golden State takes 3-2 series lead
The Golden State Warriors are one win away from their first championship since
1975 after beating the
Cleveland Cavaliers, 104-91, in
Game 5 of the 2015 NBA Finals on Sunday night.
The Warriors now hold a 3-2 series lead thanks to their second straight win and move a step closer to ending the franchise's title drought.
Stephen Curry was back to his brilliant self for the Warriors, leading the way with 37 points on 13-of-23 shooting -- including 7-of-13 from three -- as the team rode its small lineups to victory.
The Cavaliers tried to respond with some adjustments of their own, playing
LeBron James at center for extended stretches, but the Warriors came through late with a big run on their home floor to get the win.
The game was close throughout the first half, which ended with the Warriors leading, 51-50, after a pair of late free throws by
Harrison Barnes. Neither team could pull away until Golden State's 25-11 run over the final seven-plus minutes of the fourth quarter.
As good as
James was throughout this game -- putting up a ridiculous 40 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists -- the Warriors' team game was just too much in the end. Golden State shot 48 percent to
Cleveland's 39.
5 percent, and with both teams going small, the
Cavs' rebounding advantage disappeared. Golden State had 11 offensive rebounds, including six from
Barnes. Cleveland had 10 offensive rebounds as a team and lost the battle on the boards overall, 43-37.
The Warriors got challenged in a game tailored to their own style, and showed once again that nobody plays small better than them, LeBron or not. Now they're on the brink of winning their first
NBA title in 40 years, something the
Bay Area fan base has craved throughout the years. It hasn't been easy, especially after going down 2-1, but now Golden State is in the driver's seat with a 3-2 series lead. We'll see if James has anything left in the tank to push this series to a possible
Game 7.
The
Larry O'Brien Trophy will be at
Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland for
Game 6 on Tuesday as the two teams meet. A potential Game 7 would be Friday at
Oracle Arena.
3 things we learned
1. The series has officially gone small
The Warriors went small in Game 4, shrinking
Andrew Bogut's role in favor of starting
Andre Iguodala and giving
David Lee more time. It resulted in an easy win to tie the series. The Cavaliers responded with their own small lineup Sunday, and the corresponding adjustments on both sides resulted in James being the tallest player on the floor for long stretches of the game.
Bogut didn't play in Game 5.
Timofey Mozgov logged nine minutes, most in the first half. The Warriors are just being themselves, and now the Cavaliers are matching because Game 4 showed the alternative was certain defeat. Now we're looking at an
NBA Finals that will close out largely with lineups featuring players between 6'3 and 6'9.
Pretty much everyone can put the ball on the floor and step out to hit a jumper. This is the direction the
NBA has been going for a while, and now we're seeing these small, balanced lineups take center stage in the Finals.
2. LeBron is whatever Cleveland asks him to be
By going small, the Cavaliers played James at center for most of the game. He responded by orchestrating the offense and anchoring the defense in a masterful effort to keep the team in the game on the road. The forward's second triple-double nearly came in the first half -- he had 20 points, eight rebounds and eight assists by halftime -- but it still wasn't enough against a balanced, talented Warriors team.
Finishing with another 40-point game, James rebounded from a disappointing effort in Game 4 to get back to his mind-blowing ways. He spent the past few games doing everything possible on both ends to keep a shorthanded team in this series, and with the Warriors making their adjustments to seemingly turn things in their favor, the four-time
MVP is showing he'll do pretty much whatever it takes to make sure this is a close series. It may not be enough, though.
LeBron is now averaging 37 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists over five games in the Finals. His team is still down 3-2.
- published: 12 Dec 2015
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