OAKLAND — Halfway through the first quarter, J.R. Smith almost ruined the Golden State Warriors’ NBA title hopes by unintentionally taking out the knee of Klay Thompson. Late in the fourth quarter, of course, he may have ruined the Cleveland Cavaliers chances with a brain freeze for the ages.
That’s a pretty good night’s work.
It’s been broken down, analyzed and laughed at for the past 12 hours, so I’ll only add two thoughts to that pile and move on to other observations from my perch here in the Bay Area.
1) It was clear to see Smith mouth the words “I thought we were up” to Lebron James as LBJ stared him down at the end of regulation, so it was disappointing to hear Smith try to deny that post game (especially after his coach had already told the media that Smith had admitted his mistake to them).
2) The whole episode overshadows what was one of the very best games these teams have played in their 19-game Finals history.
Alright, on to everything else, and there is no shortage of tidbits to chew on…
• Perhaps forgotten in the fourth quarter carnage was the way the Cavs also bungled their final possession of the first half. Up three, they didn’t score, left too much time on the clock and Steph Curry made a desperation bomb to tie it at the buzzer.
• Speaking of bombs, there was a point in the second half where Lebron pulled up from just across centre and buried one, only to see Curry do almost the exact same thing on the ensuing possession. It was like an all-star game: Anything you can do I can do better moment, in the middle of an NBA Finals game!
• The traditional third quarter blitz for the Warriors continued. They shot 53 per cent; the Cavs shot 32 per cent and a tie game became a six-point lead after three. That makes it a 16-2 record for the team leading after three in the last four finals between these teams.
• The Cavs got back into it in the fourth by employing four bench players alongside Lebron for the first six minutes.
• Former NBA sharpshooter Dennis Scott, who joined Sportsnet’s coverage for Game 1, said any comparison between James and Michael Jordan is a little misguided.
“Lebron is more like Magic,” he said. “He facilitates his teammates more than Michael.”
After the game, Scott also called James the ultimate role player.
“His role is to be great every night. I don’t think people realize how difficult that is to do.”
Scott was also ahead of the curve in terms of three-point volume, but the number of three’s he put up in the 1990s pales in comparison to what happens in today’s NBA.
“I always tell my Mom, ‘Ma, I was born too soon … you had me too soon.”
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