With Kevin Love out of the lineup due to a concussion, the Cleveland Cavaliers crushed the Golden Sate Warriors 120-90 in Game 3 Wednesday night.
LeBron James backed up his promise to play better and took over the game with 32 pooints and 11 rebounds; Kyrie Irving was red-hot early on and finished with 30 points and eight assists.
Down 2-1 in the NBA Finals, the Cavs now have a glimmer of hope with Game 4 looming Friday night back at the Q.
The fans that haven't left are chanting "Cavs in 6! Cavs in 6!"
— SLAM Magazine (@SLAMonline) June 9, 2016
Per the Akron Beacon Journal:
LeBron James awarded his figurative game ball to Richard Jefferson and he credited Kyrie Irving with taking the game over both early and late, but the truth is James’ move into the post is what at least temporarily saved the Cavaliers’ season. […] James fueled the rage. He roared at his teammates in the tunnel before they even took the court (“Follow my lead and do your f—— job,”), he roared after the national anthem and he stomped uncontrollably and roared again 2 1/2 minutes into the game when the Cavs’ 9-0 start forced the Warriors to call a timeout.
James in the post early worked wonders for the Cavs, as it usually does. James inside surrounded by shooters can make life miserable for any defense, including one as sound as the Warriors. […] “I missed a ton of chippies,” James said. “But I was loving the space that I was getting and my teammates created for me.”
Now it’s important to realize how poorly the Warriors played Wednesday. Half of their shots were uncontested; they just missed them. The Warriors shot 15-of-38 when the nearest defender was at least 4 feet away. Within that figure is another, more startling subtext: They shot 5-of-15 when the nearest defender was at least 6 feet away. Klay Thompson and Steph Curry combined to shoot 4-of-12 when the nearest defender was at least 4 feet away. […] “It was all me. They were playing aggressive defense and they came out with a big punch,” Curry said. “I didn’t do anything about it or play my game, and for me to do what I need to do to help my team, I have to play a hundred times better than that, especially in the first quarter, to kind of control the game, and I didn’t do it.”
