J-Speaks: 2018 NBA Finals Preview: Warriors versus Cavaliers Again

In the history of the four major North American sports league, no two teams have matched up for the chance to be champions for four consecutive seasons in either Major League Baseball (MLB); the National Hockey League (NHL); the National Football League (NFL) or the National Basketball Association (NBA). When the 2018 NBA Finals, presented by YouTube TV tip-off on Thursday night at 9 p.m. on ABC, history will be made as for the fourth year in succession the defending NBA champions from the “Bay Area” will square off against the three-time defending Eastern Conference champions from “The Land.” 

For the fourth year in a row the Cleveland Cavaliers of the Eastern Conference will face the Golden State Warriors in The Finals for the right to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy. 

The Warriors are looking to achieve back-to-back titles for the first time in franchise history, while the Cavs are trying to capture their second title in the last four seasons. 

There was some doubt about the fourth chapter of this rivalry taking place as the respective challengers to the Finals participants in the Boston Celtics and Houston Rockets took the Cavs and Warriors to the limit in the Conference Finals. Both the Cavs and Warriors eventually got past the C’s and Rockets in seven games, denying some NBA aficionados a championship series featuring some fresh new blood and different storylines. 

This fourth installment between the Cavs and Warriors will bring its own excitement and intrigue. 

Rivalries are what makes pro sports one of the most exciting and compelling and this fourth clash arguably the second highest rated in the past six decades of the NBA compared only to the storied Celtics-Los Angeles Lakers struggles. 

To bring this clash between the Cavs versus the Warriors into clearer context, NBA opponents had only matched up in consecutive Finals only 12 times in NBA history. The same two teams had never butted heads in The Finals three seasons in succession. The last time the same two teams matched up in The Finals in consecutive seasons was in 2013-14 when the Miami Heat, led by four-time league MVP LeBron James, and fellow perennial All-Stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh matched up with two-time league MVP Tim Duncan, along with future Hall of Famers Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker, and the San Antonio Spurs. Prior to that, the eventual back-to-back-to-back NBA champion Chicago Bulls, led by Hall of Famers Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and then head coach Phil Jackson faced Hall of Famers John Stockton, Karl Malone and then head coach Jerry Sloan, and the Utah Jazz in the 1997 and 1998 Finals. 

Of the prior seven consecutive times that James has advanced to The Finals, dating back to 2010 when he led the Heat to the championship round, his eighth straight of nine overall appearance may be perhaps his toughest test to date. 

While we know that “King” James, will bring his A+ game to the hardwood from the start of this series to the end, it is his supporting cast of JR Smith, Jeff Green, Tristan Thompson, Jordan Clarkson, Larry Nance, Jr., Kyle Korver, and George Hill have been very inconsistent this postseason. 

That unpredictability by the Cavs not named LeBron James is one of many reasons it took the Cavs seven games to beat the No. 5 Seeded Indiana Pacers in the First-Round. While they got pasted the No. 1 Seed in the East the Toronto Raptors in a four-game sweep in the Semifinals, the Celtics battled the Cavs tooth and nail in the Eastern Conference Finals before taking them down in Game 7 87-79 on Sunday night. 

Unlike the first three times head coach Tyronn Lue’s squad has squared off against the Warriors, James in this fourth matchup will not have Kyrie Irving, who was dealt to the Celtics back in the summer of 2017 and All-Star forward/center Kevin Love is unlikely to play in Game 1 on Thursday night because of a concussion he sustained in team’s 109-99 victory in Game 6 of the Conference Finals back on Friday night. 

That being said, at 33 years of age in season No. 15, James has appeared in all 100 of the Cavs games and has just continued to perform at an even higher level this postseason, where he has averaged who has averaged 34.0 points, 9.2 rebounds and 8.8 assists, on 54.2 percent from the field and a decent 34.4 percent from three-point range. The only real negative of James during the 2018 NBA playoffs has been his 73.0 percentage from the free throw line. 

For the defending champion Warriors, their 2017-18 season was marked by boredom and a seriousness to manage injuries that led them to winning 59 games, their lowest number in the four seasons under head coach Steve Kerr. 

The Warriors entered the 2018 postseason without two-time league MVP Stephen Curry on the shelf due to a knee injury. 

Even without one half of their dynamic starting backcourt, the Warriors still managed to get passed the five-time champion Spurs and the New Orleans Pelicans 4-1 respectably in the first two rounds behind the teams other three All-Stars in Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green. 

The All-Star Core 4 became whole again when Curry made his return in Game 2 of the Semis versus the Pelicans, scoring 28 points with seven rebounds and two steals in 27 minutes off the bench, going 8 for 15 from the field, including 5 for 10 from three-point range in the Warriors 121-116 win on May 1. 

Even with the Core 4 back together again, the Warriors got all they could handle and them some in the Western Conference Finals versus the Rockets. So much so that a 98-94 loss in Game 5 last Thursday night had them on the brink of elimination trailing 3-2.

Aside from their dominant performance in their 126-85 win in Game 3 versus the Rockets, the Warriors offense throughout the 2018 NBA playoffs has not always looked like the well-oiled, high-octane, three-point sniping, high assists offensive juggernaut that has helped them win two titles in the past three seasons.  

What has gotten them to this point has been their consistency at the defensive end and their ability to take control of games in the third quarter. 

The Warriors put it all together in Game 6 of the West Finals as they took down the Rockets 115-86 back on Saturday night to tie the series 3-3. 

In term of their offense, the Warriors shot 49.3 percent on the night from the field, including 16 for 38 (42.1 percent) from three-point range, going 12 for 20 from the distance in the second half. They finished with 26 assists and just 12 turnovers, and while they were outscored in fast break points 24-16 by the Rockets, they outscored them in the paint 40-32. 

Two years back in the Conference Finals at the Oklahoma City Thunder on the verge of elimination, Thompson came up large with 41 points going 14 for 31 from the field, including 11 for 18 from three-point range. 

Last Saturday night, Thompson came up large again scoring 21 of his 35 points in the second half going 13 for 23 from the floor, hitting 9 for his 14 triples with six rebounds and four steals. Curry had a stellar performance himself with 29 points on 12 for 23 shooting, including five threes in 14 tries with six assists, five boards and three blocks shots. Durant had 23 points, seven rebounds and two steals going 10 for 14 at the free throw line. While he scored just four points, Green had an impact with 10 boards, nine assists, four steals and five blocks. 

Trailing 61-51 at intermission, the Warriors turned up the intensity at the defensive end outscoring the Rockets 64-25 in the second half. After going 11 for 22 from three-point range in the opening half, the Rockets 4 for 17 from distance in the second half and shot 29 percent overall after intermission. The visitors were forced into 10 of their 21 turnovers in the second half, which led to 23 Warriors points. 

The Warriors who as mentioned earlier have been the best team in the league this season after halftime showed that dominance in Game 6 outscoring the Rockets 33-16 in the third quarter, going 11 for 21 from the field in the third period, with seven of those field goals being three-pointers. 

They were just as dominant in the fourth outscoring the Rockets 31-9 and going 12 for 19 from the field in the final frame. The Rockets in contrast were an abysmal 4 for 21 from the floor in the fourth. 

The Warriors had the same carryover in Game 7 on Monday night as they turned a 11-point deficit at halftime (54-43) into a seven-point lead (76-69) after three quarters on their way to a 101-92 win at the Toyota Center in Houston, TX on Monday night. 

The Warriors, who entered Game 7 with a point differential of +8.3 the first six games outscored the Rockets 33-15 in the third, hitting 12 for 21 from the floor, while holding the Rockets to 6 for 25 shooting. Seven of those field goals in the period were from three-point range in 12 tried, while the Rockets missed all 12 of their triple tries. Durant and Curry led the way combining for 24 of those 33 points, scoring 14 and 10 points respectably.

Durant finished with 21 of a game-high 34 points on 11 for 21 from the field, including 5 for 11 from three-point range with five rebounds, five assists and three blocks. Curry had 19 of his 27 points in the second half, going 10 for 22 from the field, including 7 for 15 from three-point range with 10 assists, nine boards and four steals. Thompson who battled four-trouble early on had 19 points, while Green had a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds, with five assists. 

To bring how the Warriors put the squeeze on the Rockets offense in the West Finals, during the regular season the No. 1 Seed in the West was held under 100 points just seven times during the regular season, losing five of those seven games. They were held under the century mark in five of the seven games in the series, including the last four. 

In that Game 7 loss, the Rockets shot just 40 percent on the night and went 7 for 44 from three-point range, including missing 27 in a row at one point.  

Last season, James averaged a triple-double in The Finals and the Warriors No. 1 task will be trying to slow him down. That has proven easier said than down as mentioned earlier. 

The Pacers in the opening round tried Lance Stephenson and Bojan Bogdanovic, that did not work as James averaged 34.4 points, 10.0 boards and 7.7 assists on 55.3 percent shooting in the seven games. 

In the Semis against the Raptors, rookie OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam did not fare any better as James averaged 34.0 points, 11.3 assists, 8.3 rebounds and 1.8 steals, on 55.3 percent from the field in the four-game sweeping. 

Even the vaunted Celtics’ defense led by Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, Marcus Morris, and others were no match for James, who averaged 33.6 points, nine boards and 8.4 assists on 52.4 percent shooting in seven games in the Conference Finals. 

If swingman Andre Iguodala, the Warriors primary defender on James, who has been shelved the final four games of the Conference Finals because of a bone bruise in his knee cannot go to start The Finals, Green, David West and the team as a whole will have to try to contain the best player in the league right now. 

For the Cavs, who will be task in slowing down Durant, the 2017 Finals MVP, who averaged 35.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.6 blocks on 55.6 percent from the field, 47.4 from three-point range and 92.7 from the charity stripe. 

The first Cavalier to take on that task will be forward Jeff Green, the newest edition to this rivalry. 

Speaking Green, he and the other Cavs role players will be vital in terms of the production they can provide offensively as well as defensively. 

In the first three Finals tilts between these to squads, it was the Warriors who had the upper hand when it came to players not named Curry, Thompson and Green, and Durant last season. 

This time around, it is the Cavaliers who enter with the more capable so-called “others” as NBA on TNT/NBATV analyst Shaquille O’Neal likes to call the role players. 

The question for the Cavs is will coach Lue play the likes of Nance, Jr., Clarkson, Hood, and Hill, even their shots are not going or will he stick with the veterans in Korver, Thompson, Smith and Green. 

Coach Kerr has shown that he has complete confidence in playing the likes of Shaun Livingston, JaVale McGee, Kevon Looney, Nick Young, rookie Jordan Bell and Quin Cook at any point in time. 

Perhaps the biggest area that will make all the difference in this tilt is the third quarter. As mentioned the Warriors have been dominant in the first 12 minutes after halftime outscoring the opposition by 130 points. They have average 30.5 points in the third, connecting on 51.9 percent of their field goals in their 17 playoff games. 

The Cavaliers by comparison have only outscored their opponents this postseason by just one point (438-437) and have hit just 34.6 percent of their shot attempts after intermission. 

When these two teams met in the regular season, the Warriors beat the Cavs handily in both meetings on Christmas Day 2017 (99-92) and on Martin Luther King Day Jan. 15 (118-108). That loss prompted the Cavs and their general manager Koby Altman to overhaul the roster at the Feb. 8 trade deadline. While those moves were exciting at the time and gave the Cavs a major boost have been inconsistent since then and has left James to shoulder the burden of the Cavs heading into The Finals. 

Four years ago, the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers took an unprecedented course into the hearts of the sports public. As they meet for the fourth time in The Finals, they bring once again star power both on the hardwood in LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Kevin Love. It is that familiarity that will keep this championship series strong with the viewing public here nationally and globally as we all await to see if the Warriors can win their second straight Larry O’Brien trophy, their third overall in the last four seasons and sixth in franchise history. The Cavs are trying to win their second in the last four seasons and James is trying to win his fourth title overall. 

The fourth installment of the Cavaliers versus the Warriors gets underway with Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals, presented by YouTube TV on Thursday night at 9 p.m. and the entire series on ABC. 

Series prediction: Warriors in six games.

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 5/26/18 9 p.m. Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals between the Houston Rockets versus Golden State Warriors on TNT, presented by Hulu with Marv Albert, Chris Webber, Reggie Miller, David Aldridge, and Kristen Ledlow; 5/26/18 11:30 p.m. edition of “Inside the NBA,” presented by Kia on TNT with Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley, and Shaquille O’Neal; 5/28/18 9 p.m. Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals between the Golden State Warriors versus Houston Rockets on TNT, presented by Hulu with Marv Albert, Chris Webber, Reggie Miller, David Aldridge, and Kristen Ledlow; 5/29/18 www.nba.com article, “NBA Finals Preview: Cleveland Cavaliers versus Golden State Warriors, An Encore Presentation,” by Steve Aschburner; www.espn.com/nba/player/gamelog/_/id/3975/stephen-curry; www.espn.com/nba/player/gamelog/_/id/3202/year/2017/kevin-durant; www.espn.com/nba/player/gamelog/_/id/1966/lebron-james; and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_State_Warriors.

J-Speaks: The Stakes of Game 7 of the 2018 Western Conference Finals

When the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors take on the Houston Rockets in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals at the Toyota Center in Houston, TX tonight on TNT, there will be a lot on the line for both teams. For one team, they will be playing for a chance at repeating as NBA champions as well as their hold as the top dogs in the West. While the opposition, who earned this opportunity because they earned the best record in the West is looking to earn their first trip to the NBA Finals since the 1994-95 season where led by a Hall of Fame duo put a bow on their run of back-to-back titles. The Warriors kept their hopes alive thanks to what they did at home in Game 6. 

Led by their All-Star Core Four, the defending champion Warriors overcame a rough first quarter and lambasted the Rockets 115-86 at Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA to tie the series at 3-3 to force a winner take all Game 7. 

The Warriors were led by the “Splash Brothers” of All-Star Klay Thompson, who had a game-high 35 points in the second half going 13 for 23 from the field, including 9 for 14 from three-point range with six rebounds and four steals and two-time league MVP and fellow perennial All-Star Stephen Curry had 29 points going 12 for 23 from the field, including 5 for 14 from three-point range with six assists, five boards and three block shots. 

While 2014 league MVP and last season’s Finals MVP in Kevin Durant was just 6 for 17 from the field, he was 10 for 14 from foul line authoring 23 points with seven rebounds and four assists. 

The ultimate swiss army knife of not just the team, but maybe the entire NBA in Draymond Green, who said after the Warriors 98-94 loss in Game 5 last Thursday night, “We’ll be back here for Game 7… You’d be a fool not to believe me,” had just four points, but had a great all-around performance with 10 rebounds, nine assists, five block shots and four steals. 

“I don’t want to go home. We worked too hard this season to go home and this is what we play for,” Thompson, who had 21 of his 35 points in the second half said to TNT’s sideline reporter David Aldridge after the win. “When your backs against the wall, it shows what you’re made of and this feels great right now, but as I’m up the tunnel David I’m going to forget about this game.”

As good as the Warriors were offensively on the night shooting 49.4 percent from the floor; hitting 16 of their 38 three-pointers; having 26 assists, compared to just 12 turnovers, and scoring 40 points in the paint. It was their defensive intensity and high level of concentration, especially in the second half that made all the difference. 

After scoring 39 points in the opening quarter, the most the Warriors have surrendered in a period during the 2018 postseason, the defending champs held the Rockets to 47 total points over the final three quarters. The had 10 block shots and 11 steals on the evening. 

After hitting 8 for 12 from three-point range in the opening stanza, the Rockets went just for 27 the rest of the game; were out-rebounded 55-49, including 13-7 on the offensive glass; were outscored in the paint 40-32 and had just 13 assists on the night. 

While the won the battle in fast break points 24-16, the Rockets shot themselves in the foot with 21 turnovers that led to 23 Warriors points. That really highlighted the absence of perennial All-Star lead guard Chris Paul who was shelved for Game 6 because of a hamstring injury he sustained in the late stages of Game 5. 

“Our defense has been really good throughout this series and tonight it was just awful to start the game,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said after the game about the Warriors rough start to Game 6. 

“We lost people in transition. We didn’t communicate. We gave up wide open threes. They scored 39 points in the first quarter and it was sort of a head scratcher. I was more worried about the offense coming into the game than the defense.” 

“But the defense eventually kicked in and obviously that led to transition and the shot making, and the second half was just amazing.”

One strength of the Warriors over these past four seasons under Kerr has been their ability to get off to great starts in the second half. That has been the case in this series versus the Rockets where they had a point differential of +6.6 in the first five games of this series. In Game 6, the Warriors outscored the Rockets 33-16 in the third quarter to take control of the game and they never looked back. 

“All season long they’ve played great third quarters. I think they tend to get dialed in a little bit more,” Kerr said of his team’s ability to raise their level of play after halftime this season. 

“Tonight, was a really good microcosm of our team in many ways. We have these lapses and then we have these burst, and everything in between. So, it’s a strange start to the game. You can tell Houston, they can see it. They can see The Finals right there and we kind of thought they would come out hot because this was a little bit of a free swing for them. Game 6 on the road. They know that they got Game 7 in their back pocket at home.” 

“So, they cam out lose. I thought they would shoot 50 threes tonight, they got 39, but it seemed like 50 to me early in the game.”

After going 4 for 18 from three-point range in the first half, the Warriors went 7 for 11 from long distance in the third period. Defensively, the Warriors forced the Rockets into seven of their 21 miscues, while committing just three of their 12 turnovers on the night. 

“Effort. Intensity, the passion. Those three things and playing smart,” Thompson said to Aldridge about what made the difference. “When we do that and we rotate, and we help each other we’re the best defensive team in the league.”

The Warriors really put a strangle on the Rockets offense as they managed just nine points on 4 for 21 from the field, missing 11 of their first 12 field goal attempts in the period. The Warriors in the final quarter scored 31 points, making 12 of their 19 shots from the field. 

As poised and smart as the Warriors played in Game 6, the Rockets in the middle stage of the third quarter on lost their composure and displayed the kind of play that got them beaten in Game 1, where they lost 119-106 and in Game 3 when they were simply blown off the Warriors court 126-85. 

During one of the timeouts, Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni said to his team as was recorded by TNT’s Inside Tracks, “There going to make there little runs, big deal. Big deal. Just keep going. Keep it going.” 

“Keep our poise we can keep our energy. If we get mad too much, we lose energy. We don’t want to do that. Stay calm.” 

That calm eventually dissipated for the Rockets, who after leading 74-73 after Warriors reserve rookie forward Jordan Bell went 1 for 2 at the foul line, the Rockets were outscored 42-12 the rest of the game.

Harden who led the way with 32 points with nine assists, seven rebounds and three steals, had just 10 points the second half, going just 4 for 10 from the field and no free throw attempts after going 8 for 9 from the charity stripe in the opening half. While he broke out of a major slump from three-point range, where he had missed his last 21 in a row, he made 4 of his first 9 triples, but finished 4 for 12 from distance on the evening. 

While Eric Gordon, Trevor Ariza, and the previously mentioned Green scored in double figures with 19, 14 and 11 respectably, they really flamed out as the game went on. 

Ariza was just 6 for 18 from the field on the evening, including 2 for 9 from three-point range. While Gordon shot a solid 7 for 12 from the field, including 4 for 6 from three-point range, he was just 1 for 4 at the free throw line and committed five turnovers. 

“The bottom line is we can’t turn it over,” D’Antoni said during his postgame presser. “We need to do a better job but we knew this was going to be hard. There champs. They’re going to come back fighting and they did. They did their part. Saw a lot of things I really like out there. I like where we are.”

Starting center Clint Capela, who throughout this season has been a major contributor for the Rockets had 15 rebounds but managed just two points on three shots and recorded just one block shot in 29 minutes. 

For both the Warriors and Rockets, there season comes down to Game 7 tonight in “Clutch City.” Despite all that has transpired the prior six games, both teams have the dream of being one step closer to the Larry O’Brien trophy right in front of them. 

When the Warriors have played with that championship poise, confidence, and determination on both ends of the floor in this series, they have been the superior team. When they have not, they have gotten beaten. If they can play with an unrelenting amount of concentration for 48 minutes tonight, they will be in The Finals with a chance to defend their championship. 

“We played smart tonight or smarter. So, if we take the same focus and execute the game plan like we should I have all the confidence in the world in this team,” Thompson said to Aldridge. 

“These are the moments you live for, especially as an NBA player. You want this opportunity and it’s right there for us. So, we got to have amnesia about tonight and we got to get to Houston and stay focused.” 

For the Rockets, there entire off-season in terms of building this roster, they way they played in winning a franchise record 65 games and getting to this point of the playoffs winning their first two rounds over the Minnesota Timberwolves and Utah Jazz in five games respectably was for this moment. To have Game 7 in their house against the defending NBA champion and three-time Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors with a chance to go to The Finals. 

Whether they have Chris Paul in the lineup and healthy enough to play at a high level or not with that injured hamstring will make the difference. That said this is something anyone would want. It is up to them now to make it count, and James Harden, the presumptive 2017-18 NBA MVP must play a major part in what the Rockets hope is a victory. 

“If someone had told me we got the seventh game on our home court against Golden State would you sing up for it? Yeah, we’d sign up right there,” D’Antoni said.

“We got what we want. Now it’s up to us to go get it. They’ll be rocking. H-town will be fired up and now it’s up to us to knock them out.” 

Whatever will unfold between the defending champion Warriors and the Rockets in Game 7, winner take all of the Western Conference Finals will take place tonight at the Toyota Center from Houston, TX tonight at 9 p.m. on TNT. 

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 5/26/18 9 p.m. Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals on TNT, presented by Hulu with Marv Albert, Chris Webber, Reggie Miller, David Aldridge, and Kristen Ledlow; 5/26/18 11:30 p.m. edition of TNT’s “Inside the NBA,” presented by Kia with Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal; www.espn.com/nba/team/schedule/_/name/gs/golden-state-warriors; www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameid=401032766; and www.espn.com/nba/matchup?gameid=401032766.

J-Speaks: The Stakes of Game 7 of the 2018 Eastern Conference Finals

When the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics take the TD Garden floor in Boston, MA on Sunday night at 8:30 p.m. Eastern on ESPN. There will be a lot on the table besides a trip to represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals of 2018. For the Cavs, there reign as three-time defending East champions is on the line, but the future of their four-time league MVP who has been the one constant for them this entire season. For the Celtics, they have an opportunity to reach The Finals for the first time in eight seasons, but they are trying to be the first team to deny the best player of this generation another chance at the Larry O’Brien trophy. 

The Cavaliers are in this position in large part due to four-time league MVP and perennial All-Star LeBron James, who authored another masterpiece in an elimination game with 46 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists in leading his squad to a 109-99 win in Game 6 versus the C’s on Friday night to tie the series 3-3. 

How good was the 33-year-old from Akron, OH in his 15^th NBA season? He scored or assisted on 14 of the Cavs points during a 20-4 run in the first half that gave them control of the game and improved his career mark to 10-3 at home when his team is facing elimination at home. 

“He was huge and that’s what you expect out of the best player in the world,” Cavs head coach Tyronn Lue, who team improved to 8-1 at home this postseason said after the win during his postgame presser. “You expect games like this on elimination night.” 

After trailing 25-20 after the first period, James scored 17 of his 25 first half points in the second quarter, playing all 24 first half minutes. He nearly out scored the entire Celtics team in the period 18-17 as the Atlantic Division champions of 2017-18 were just 6 for 19 from the field in the quarter as the Cavs outscored them 34-18 to take a 54-43 lead into intermission. 

In the early stages of the fourth quarter when the Celtics were making their surge, forward Larry Nance, Jr. blocked a shot of Celtics’ rookie forward Jayson Tatum, but in the process of coming down collided with the right lower leg of James. He limped around for a little bit but stayed in the game. 

“I would’ve had to literally have a real, real, really bad injury to come off the floor with the opportunity that we had to be able to force a Game 7,” James, who was 17 for 33 from the floor and 7 for 11 from the charity stripe said during his postgame presser. 

When the dust settled and the Cavs punched their ticket to Game 7 at the C’s, James played all but 1:54 seconds of the elimination contest and authored the highest scoring game in a possible win or go home game, which was also his 7^th game of the 2018 postseason of 40-points or more. Only the Hall of Famer and the NBA logo Jerry West has more games with 40 or more in a single postseason. 

James saved his best for last scoring or assisting on 16 of the Cavs final 18 points, which included hitting two straight three-pointers in the closing minutes of the game, at the tail end of the shot clock and an and-one bank shot on Tatum in the final minute to seal the game. 

“Our team is built on me being out on the floor. To be able to make plays not only for myself but [to] make plays for others and its just the way we’ve been playing and we’ve been successful with it. I was able to play 46 minutes today and I got my couple of minutes I guess,” James said about the small breather he got during the game.”

As great as James was, the reason he individually improved to 5-0 in games with the season on the line against an Eastern Conference opponent over the last eight postseasons is because he got some help from a couple of his teammates. 

Starting lead guard George Hill had 20 points on 7 for 12 shooting. Forward Jeff Green had 14 points off the bench, while Nance, Jr. had 10 points, seven boards and two steals, going 5 for 5 off the pine.  

Of all the players on the court of Quicken Loans Arena on Friday night that understands how James can rise up and deliver the kind of performance that he did with the Cavs season on the line is Hill, who when he was with the Pacers saw their season’s end at the hands of James while he was with the Miami Heat in 2012 and 2013. 

“I thought the best was when he always put us out, but to actually see it when he’s on your team and things like that, I mean I can’t put it into words,” Hill said. “Sometimes I just think, ‘How did he make that shot or how did he make that move, or when did he see that pass?’” 

“Just night in and night out, just making big plays and big shots, and people always listing him as not a shooter, but he’s making big shots down the stretch. If it’s three-pointers, layups, dunks, passes. He can do it all.” 

Seeing all those plays and shots being made by James, particularly on him was Tatum. James when being guarded by the rookie out of Duke went 6 for 8 shooting in Game 6, including 3 for 3 from distance with as mentioned two coming in the final moments including the and-one banker that sealed the win. 

“I mean it was just two great shots,” Tatum, who had 15 points on the evening said after the loss. 

Celtics head coach Brad Stevens called James after his performance the, “Best player in the game. So, special night tonight…I can’t say enough good things about him.” 

Speaking of the Celtics, the fact that they are in a position to be one win away from the NBA Finals is remarkable.

Think about, they have been without All-Star Gordon Hayward since minutes into the start of this season with a serious ankle injury. They lost All-Star lead guard Kyrie Irving, who the Celtics acquired back in the off-season from the Cavs because of knee surgery back in early March. 

They are in this position because the youngsters on the squad in Tatum, Marcus Smart Jaylen Brown, and Terry Rozier and veterans Al Horford, Marcus Morris and Aron Baynes have stepped during the postseason. 

While they have gone just 1-7 on the road this postseason, they are a perfect 10-0 at home this postseason and all-time in Game 7s the Celtics are 23-8 overall, which includes a 20-4 mark at home. They have won their last three home games in Game 7, which includes a 112-96 win in the Quarterfinals versus the Milwaukee Bucks on Apr. 28. 

If the Celtics plan to be victorious in Game 7 tonight, they will need to somehow contain James, whose has averaged 34.9 points, which is the highest all-time in Game 7s in NBA postseason history with a minimum of two games. That is higher than the 33.7 average of the great Michael Jordan, the 33.0 average of perennial All-Star forward of the Golden State Warriors Kevin Durant and the 32.5 average of Hall of Famer and 2001 league MVP Allen Iverson. 

On top of that, James has the highest points per game average in NBA postseason history when facing elimination with the minimum of five games at 34.1 in 22 games. That his higher than the 31.3 of Jordan; the 31.2 in five games by Irving and the 31.1 of the late great Wilt Chamberlin, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. 

“We know that he’s going to make tough shots. We know he’s going to be aggressive, but that’s no excuse for him to just let him score 40 and try to stop the other guys,” Rozier, who led the Celtics with 28 points in the Game 6 loss. “We’re trying to stop him too but you know just show length and make it tough for him as much as we can. We’re trying to make him exert as much energy. So, it’s going to be important.”

As much as James will need to be his out of this world self in Game 7 on the Celtics’ home floor, they will need the likes of JR Smith, Tristan Thompson, Kyle Korver, Jordan Clarkson, Green, Hill and Nance, Jr. to rise to the moment unlike their first three chances in Boston. 

There performance will be even more critical as All-Star forward Kevin Love will not play in Game 7 because of a concussion he sustained in the first quarter of Game 6. 

To illustrate the level of concern many Cavs fans have about their team entering Game 7, in their eight road games in the 2018 postseason, the Cavs have gone just 3-5, scoring 97.8 points and allowing 105.8 points to the opposition. Since losing their first home game in the opening round versus the Pacers 98-80 on Apr. 15, Cavs have won their last eight to improve to 8-1 at “The Q,” scoring 105.8 points and allowing just 97.1.  

Host of ESPN’s “NBA: The Jump,” which can be seen weekdays at 3 p.m. Rachel Nichols said on the Friday night’s edition of “Sportscenter” that why both teams in this series have struggled in the opposing team’s court is the fact that in the case of Celtics they have young players and role players that have not stepped into their own into this series, how the opposing crowd rattles them or how offensively they take shots early in the 24-second clock. 

“All those clichés are magnified when you have players in this series who kind of fit those descriptions,” Nichols said to John Anderson. “That being said, it’s going to be very interesting in Game 7 to see who jumps out with that first quarter lead.” 

“If the Celtics are the ones who do that, they are going to ride the crowd. They are going to be confident and they can ride that all the way to the NBA Finals.” 

“If the Cavs are the ones who are able to jump out early and that Garden crowd starts getting nervous and those young players start getting nervous you can see a much different result.” 

Which makes the LeBron James factor even more important on both sides. In his seven Game 7 appearances, James is 5-2 all-time, winning his last five in succession and in his last seven elimination games, James including his prior mentioned performance on Saturday night has either authored a triple-double or scored 40-plus points. 

In Game 5 of the 2016 Finals James had 41 points on 16 for 40 shooting with 16 rebounds and seven assists in leading the Cavs to a 115-101 win at the Warriors to close the series deficit to 3-2. In Game 6 back in Cleveland, James 41 points on 16 for 27 from the field with 11 assists and eight boards in the 115-101 win to tie the series at 3-3. In Game 7. James finished with 27 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists as the Cavs won the game and their first title in franchise history 93-89 at the Warriors. After the win, James expressed his emotions of delivering the city of Cleveland’s first pro sports title in nearly six decades by saying to ABC’s Doris Burke, “Cleveland, this is for you!” Besides authoring a triple-double James had a key block of a shot by 2015 Finals MVP Andre Iguodala late in the fourth quarter that made a huge difference and Irving hit the game-clinching three-pointer that also made the difference. 

With their season on the line in the 2017 Finals, James had another triple-double of 31 points with 11 assists and 10 boards as the Cavs won 137-116 versus the Warriors to cut the series lead to 3-1. In the 129-120 loss versus the Warriors back at Oracle Arena in Game 5, James had 41 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists as the Warriors won their second Larry O’Brien trophy in the last three seasons. 

In Game 7 of the opening round of this year’s playoffs, James had 45 points, going 16 for 25 from the field with eight rebounds and seven assists in leading the Cavs to a 105-101 versus the Pacers to advance to the Semifinals, where they swept the No. 1 Seeded Toronto Raptors 4-0.

"I don't think there's anything that they can show us on the floor as far as X's and O's that we haven't seen in six games," James, who is looking to advance to The Finals for the eighth straight season said on Sunday afternoon.  

There will be a couple of guarantees when the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics tip-off for Game 7 at TD Garden in Boston, MA at 8:30 on ESPN tonight. There will a full audience of Celtics fans on hand and many more watching on television at home or at many restaurants and bars across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 

The team though has to play to the level they did in the first three games of the series where they beat the Cavs by an average of 17 points. The Celtics though expect a knockout drag out fight and as Marcus Smart said to ESPN Celtics’ reporter Chris Forsberg after the Game 6 loss, “You’ve got to be able to get down and get dirty.” 

“We’ve got to be ready to come out with out nose bloodied, our mouths bloodied. We’ve got to come out ready to fight.” 

Rozier echoed those same sentiments by saying to Forsberg, “We can’t just rely on being at home. It’s not going to be easy.” 

Coach Stevens said that his team is “resilient” and simply said, “We’ll be ready.” 

He added, "If you don't have fun with this, why are you doing it, right?"

The other guarantee is that LeBron James will show up and be ready to play. How well he plays, as well as his supporting cast as mentioned earlier will dictate if the Cavs will be in the game to the very end with a chance to win or as has occurred the prior three visits to Boston this series be blown right off the floor. 

“We know what this man is capable of. Boston, they are full aware. The city, the fans, the team, the organization, everybody. They’re full aware of what he can bring to the table,” host of ESPN’s “First Take” Stephen A. Smith said on the Friday night edition of “Sportscenter” about the Cavs chances in Game 7. 

“But because of how awful his supporting cast has displayed itself to be on the road on too many occasions in these playoffs and you couple that with the lower leg injury, the elements of fatigue that he’s [James] displayed you got to wonder about Game 7.” 

“It’s one thing to concede like Toronto does because we just have to bow at the alter of LeBron James. In Boston’s case they recognize what he’s going to do, but they make him work for everything and if he has to do that in a Game 7. As tired as he looked in Game 5, 15 years in the league, 33 years of age, all those minutes he logged. He logged 46 minutes in Game 6. Forgive me if I’m wondering how much he’s going to have in Game 7?” 

“He’s got the perfect excuse in the world to lay down and die in these playoffs. I’m not saying he will do it. I’m saying if he does there’s a whole bunch of LeBron lovers out there who will surely understand.” 

We will see what unfolds later tonight in Game 7 between the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Boston Celtics in Game 7 for the right to go to represent the East in the NBA Finals at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN. 

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 5/26/18 1 a.m. edition of ESPN’s “Sportscenter,” with John Buccigross and John Anderson; 5/26/18 6 p.m. edition of WABC 7 “Eyewitness News,” with Joe Torres Sandra Bookman, Jeff Smith with weather and Anthony Johnson with sports; 5/26/18 6 p.m. edition of WPIX 11 “News at 6,” with Ayana Harry, Andy Adler with sports and Craig Allen with weather; www.espn.com/nba/team/schedule/_/name/bos/boston-celtics; and www.espn.com/nba/team/schedule/_/name/cle/cleveland-cavaliers.

J-Speaks: Milwaukee Bucks Hire New Head Coach

Dating back to the start of the 1999-00 NBA campaign, the Milwaukee Bucks have been team that has had talent. However, that talent has not always equaled success as they have one Eastern Conference Finals appearance, which was in 2001 and they have had their season end in opening round of the playoffs their last eight appearances, with their latest one at the hands of the Boston Celtics in seven games. With their move to a new building in the 2018-19 season and boasting a Top 10 player in the league along with some solid players around him, the Bucks entering this off-season needed to find the man that was going to get them to reach their full potential. They made their choice is someone who has seen first hand what it takes to build a successful team that has multiple championships on its resume. 

On Friday, the Bucks named former Atlanta Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer as their new head coach, their 16^th in franchise history. 

The Bucks finished 44-38 this past regular season but lost in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals of the playoffs to the Boston Celtics in seven gamers. Management had fired Hall of Famer to be in head coach Jason Kidd in late January when the team was 23-22 and replaced him with assistant coach Joe Prunty, who led the Bucks to a 21-16 mark to close the season before hiring Budenholzer.

“We are thrilled to welcome Mike Budenholzer as the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks,” Bucks’ General Manager Jon Hurst said on Friday. “Mike has played a key role in building successful teams throughout his career. He’s widely respected and has shown a special ability to teach and develop players. His leadership, basketball intellect, championship-level experience and communication skills make him the right fit to take our team to the next level.” 

According to ESPN, the Bucks coaching search came down to Budenholzer and current San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Ettore Messina, who the Bucks informed he was out of the running on Wednesday when a representative of the organization negotiated a four-year deal with Budenholzer hours before a breakfast meeting with Bucks’ two-time All-Star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and his teammate in swingman Khris Middleton. 

Budenholzer, a native of Holbrook, AZ was also in the running to be the next head coach of the Toronto Raptors, who axed their then head coach Dwane Casey after a franchise record for wins of 59 this past regular season and earning the No 1 Seed in the East for the first time in franchise history. The Raptors for the second straight season though lost to the three-time defending Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers in the Semifinals in a four-game sweep.

“After a thorough coaching search, it was clear that Mike was the ideal choice as we enter into a new era of Bucks basketball,” team owners Wes Edens, Marc Lasry and Jamie Dinan said in a statement on Friday. “Mike has demonstrated the ability to lead and communicate and understands what it takes to build a winning culture.” 

If there is anyone who understands the grind it is to reaching the point in the National Basketball Association (NBA) to become a head coach for the second time is Budenholzer. 

The 1993 graduate of Pomona College in Claremont, CA where he received his bachelor’s degree in politics, philosophy and economics while playing basketball and golf. After college, Budenholzer played professionally for the Vejle Basketball Klub in Demark where he averaged 27.5 points during the 1993-94 season. He also got his start as a coach where he was the head man on the sidelines for two squads of the Vejle system.

He began his 17-year career with the Spurs in the 1994-95 season as their video coordinator for two seasons. He was elevated to assistant coach when former assistant Gregg Popovich became first the interim head coach and eventually the full-time head coach in the 1996-97 season. In his 17 seasons in the “Alamo City,” Budenholzer was part of a staff whose .675 winning percentage, a 908-438 mark was the best during the regular season, adding four   Larry O’Brien trophies as champions of the NBA (1999, 2003, 2005, 2007). Budenholzer also served as the Spurs’ summer league head coach on a number of occasions and was the advanced scout for Team USA for the 2004 Olympics when Popovich was the head coach. 

In the summer of 2013, the Atlanta Hawks hired Budenholzer to be their new head coach. 

In his first season, the Hawks 38-44, but made the playoffs as the No. 8 Seed and gave fits to the No. 1 Seeded Indiana Pacers before falling in seven games. 

The next season, the Hawks flipped the script winning a franchise record 60 games and claiming the No. 1 Seed in the East. Budenholzer was not only coached the Eastern Conference All-Stars in 2015 but was named NBA Coach of the Month twice that season as we led the Hawks to a 14-2 mark in December 2014 and in January 2015 after leading his squad to the first ever 17-0 record in a month in league history. He received the highest honor for a head coach on Apr. 21, 2015 as he received the Arnold Jacob “Red” Auerbach Trophy as the 2014-15 NBA Coach of the Year. 

In the playoffs that season, the Southeast Division champion Hawks got passed the No. 8 Seeded Brooklyn Nets and the No. 4 Seeded Washington Wizards in six games respectably, but their magical carpet ride concluded at the hands of the eventual NBA runners up the Cleveland Cavaliers and four-time league MVP LeBron James in a four-game sweep.  

The Hawks reached the playoffs again the next season as the No. 4 Seed winning 48 games but were swept again by the eventual NBA champion Cavaliers again in a four-game sweep in the Conference Semifinals. 

That off-season the Hawks took a major gamble and signed All-Star and three-time Defensive Player of the Year winner Dwight Howard to a three-year, $70.5 million deal to get the them over the hump in the East. 

It was not to be as the No. 5 Seeded Hawks, who made the postseason for the 10 straight time were eliminated in six games by the No. 4 Seeded by the Wizards in the opening round. 

That off-season, the Hawks front office felt that it was time to go in a different direction and rebuild the team with young players. The organization also shook things up with their then head coach removing Budenholzer’s position as president of basketball operations on May 5, 2017 with the arrival of new GM Travis Schlenk in the spring of 2017.

That resulted in a 24-58 record this past regular season, which was not only the first season Budenholzer had a losing record, but it was the Hawks worst record in 13 years, ending their streak of 10 straight playoff appearance, which was second to the 21 in a row ironically enough by the Spurs.   

On Apr. 25, Budenholzer and the Hawks mutually agreed to part ways after he and the front office could no longer see a path to be on the same page with the franchise’s plan to rebuild and the structure of the management. 

Before the mutual split, the Hawks granted Budenholzer permission to speak with the Phoenix Suns and the New York Knicks about their head coaching vacancies. Budenholzer pulled himself out of contention for the Suns’ opening after a few conversations with ownership and management. 

“I’m extremely grateful to the Bucks ownership group and Jon Hurst,” Budenholzer, who complied a 213-197 record in five seasons on the Hawks’ sidelines said. “We have a tremendous opportunity to take the Bucks to the next level. I look forward to working with out group of young and exciting players and helping us evolve in many ways to succeed on the court…The tremendously supportive fans in Milwaukee and throughout Wisconsin are waiting and ready. Now it’s up to us to put all the pieces together, and I can’t wait to get started.” 

Two very important pieces to what is hopefully a championship puzzle one day for the Bucks are Antetokounmpo, the so-called face of the franchise and Middleton, who as mentioned earlier met with Budenholzer earlier this week to gain a sense of the prospect of what’s to come for the Bucks. 

The organization also wanted the team’s two top offensive players to sit down with the preferred candidate for head coach. While that may seem unusual, it reflected how the important it was that the Bucks front office wanted to make Antetokounmpo and Middleton feel a part of this process. 

“I know he was a great coach,” Antetokounmpo said to ESPN at the NBA Draft Combine at the close of this week with Maria Taylor and Jay Bilas. “We had a great conversation. We talked about the game plan. How he viewed me as a player. How he can help this team? Had a lot of tough questions for him, but he was fun. I’m excited to play for him.” 

He added by saying about when the Bucks asked him and Middleton to meet with Budenholzer before his hire became official, “It meant a lot. Obviously, I’m not the guy that’s going to make the decision.” 

“You can reverse that, like the front office is not going to tell me how to shoot a jump shot. I do my job; they do their part. But it was great having the conversation with him.” 

The one thing that really sold the Bucks’ owners on Budenholzer was his ability as a teacher of the game and the respect he commands from his players. 

“He’s widely respected and has shown a special ability to teach and develop players,” Edens, Lasry and Dinan said. “His leadership, basketball intellect, championship-level experience and communication skills make him the right fit to take our team to the next level.” 

To bring the kind of team’s Budenholzer had with the Hawks into context, this past regular season despite their horrendous record the Hawks were No. 8 in assists per game; No. 15 in three-point percentage and finished No. 9 in three-pointers made, which was a franchise record of 917.

The Bucks in contrast were No. 14 in assists per game; 22^nd in three-point percentage and No. 27 in three-pointers made. 

It is one thing for Antetokounmpo to be the Bucks top scorer and rebounder, which he was in the regular season at 26.9 (5^th NBA) and 10.0 respectably and in their seven-game opening round setback to the Boston Celtics with averages of 25.7 points and 9.6 boards respectably with 6.3 assists, but in order for the Bucks to go further than they have, the team needs more consistency from the rest of the cast. 

Beyond the 24.7 points that Middleton averaged against the Celtics, only Eric Bledsoe and Jabari Parker averaged double-figures in points that series at 13.6 and 10.0 respectably. 

Budenholzer’s most important task right from the jump is to get this young, but talented group to bring a consistency level to the court night-in and night-out. 

When the Bucks acquired Bledsoe last season, they felt that they added another scorer and playmaker to go alongside Antetokounmpo and Middleton and there were nights that he brought that to the court and then there other nights that was not the case. A player of his caliber should for starters be averaging more than the 5.1 assists he had in the regular season and the 3.6 he averaged against the Celtics. 

Along with hiring a new head coach, another big decision the Bucks have to make this summer was to extend or not extend the contract of forward Jabari Parker. 

The No. 2 overall pick in the 2014 draft out of Duke University will be a restricted free agent on July 1 and while he has shown great promise in the early stages of his career, he has sustained two serious injuries to the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee that has caused him to miss 155 games. 

Going to back to the to do list for Budenholzer, if the Bucks have any plans to be a serious contender in the East, the 2017 Rookie of the Year Malcolm Brogdon, Tony Snell, John Henson, Thon Maker, Matthew Dellavedova, and Sterling Brown have to become bigger factors on both sides of the ball. 

They were ranked No. 5 in block shots per game at 5.4; tied with the Pacers for No. 2 in steals per game at 8.8 and were No. 3 in forced turnovers at 14.7 during the regular season, but it just seemed like for a team that has collectively one of the best wingspans in the league did not bring an attitude that they could be a great defensive team on a nightly basis, especially this past regular season and against the C’s in the postseason. 

Two stat that really brings this out is the fact that the Bucks were ranked No. 28 in rebound differential at -2.9 back in the regular season. 

There is an old saying that offense wins games and defense wins championships, the Bucks have been very inconsistent on both sides in recent years, which is why they have not advanced in the playoffs despite having an elite talent in Antetokounmpo. 

When the Bucks hired Jason Kidd, they thought they had a head man on the sidelines who could bring the best out of his players because of his experience as a player who succeeded individually and was a big part of team success helping the Dallas Mavericks in his second stint win a title in 2011. That did not work out. 

The organization hopes that Budenholzer with all his knowledge, experience in being a part of the Spurs construction of being a multiple title winner and what he did with the Hawks can turn the Bucks into a consistent a championship contender. 

Their last appearance beyond the First-Round was as mentioned in the 2001 Conference Finals where they lost to Hall of Famer Allen Iverson and the Philadelphia 76ers in seven games. Their last appearance in the NBA Finals came in 1971 when then Lew Alcindor, now Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar led them to the championship with a 4-0 sweep of the then Baltimore Bullets.  

“By all accounts this guy knows what he’s doing,” ESPN NBA analyst Tim Legler said on “Sportscenter” at the close of the week. “He’s obviously a Spur protégé, came from Gregg Popovich. Had great success in Atlanta. They went into ‘Trust the Process’ mode down there. He does not want any part of that. He’s got a star player to build around and a team that’s got some really nice young pieces around him. I think it’s a great fit. I don’t think you couldn’t have done much better than Mike Budenholzer.”

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 5/17/18 7 a.m. edition of NBATV’s “Gametime,” with Matt Winer, David Griffin and Sam Mitchell; www.nba.com story, “Mike Budenholzer Named Head Coach of the Milwaukee Bucks;” 5/17/18 www.espn.com story, “Bucks Announce Mike Budenholzer as Coach,” by Adrian Wojnarowski; 5/18/18 www.espn.comstory, “Bucks Giannis Antetokounmpo ‘excited’ to Play for Mike Budenholzer,” by Ian Begley and contribution form Adrian Wojnarowski; 

www.espn.com/nba/team/stats/_/name/mil/seasontype/2; www.espn.com/nba/statistics/_/seasontype/2; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Milwaukee_Bucks_seasons; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Milwaukee_Bucks_head_coaches; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Budenholzer; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwight_Howard#Atlanta_Hawks_(2016-17).