NBA Finals - Cleveland Cavaliers vs Golden State Warriors Game 6

NBA Finals - Cleveland Cavaliers vs Golden State Warriors Game 6

Could tonight be the last night of the NBA season or will LeBron and the Cavs stay alive? Either or, tonight will hopefully be as entertaining of game as Game 5 was. The Cavaliers played with a sense of urgency that had been missing all series. I guess when your season is on the line, there might be a little more fire in one's chest. The Cavs should have that same drive tonight, but using that kind of effort in Game 5 could have some fatigue effects in Game 6.

As I noted in my original NBA Finals preview, Kyrie Irving's rise in level of play will be a huge factor for the Cavs' success, he is truly showing he is a premier PG in the NBA and giving Steph Curry a run for his money. Kyrie's performance in Game 5 is exactly what they needed in that game. Now, I'm not saying he's going to score 40+ again, but if he can just have a slightly above average game, say maybe score 25 or more, while LeBron has near 30, the Cavs' chances of winning grow exponentially. Which brings me to my next topic...Kevin Love.

Kevin Love had a miserable offensive night in Game 5 scoring only 2 points in 33 minutes. He was nearly a non-factor, but he was second on the team, only to Kyrie in +/- of +18. This is why I don't always like the +/- stat. It's deceiving sometimes. In Game 6, Kevin Love should and needs to have a better game. The fact that the game is in Cleveland should boost his confidence somewhat. If he can step up in a way Kyrie did last game, the Cavs will win this game.

The Return of Draymond Green; this has to be the biggest story line of the night. Green and Warrior "fans" claiming they would have won if he'd played. It's all gibberish talk. With the game Kyrie and LeBron had, the Cavs weren't going to lose even if Green had played. Yes, Draymond will have an immediate impact on the game, but his presence alone is not going to be the reason why the Warriors win or lose. The Warriors lost because of their lack of defense and poor bench performance. I could see Speights getting some more playtime tonight due to Andrew Bogut being out and his offensive attributes. A few other things I want to mention with the return of Green and Andrew Bogut being out. This will totally switch up their rotation. The Warriors "DEATH" line-up will be playing even more minutes than usual tonight, due to Bogut being out.

Klay Thompson and Steph Curry

Thompson had an outstanding offensive night, almost as well as Kyrie Irving, but if you look in the box score, he had the worst +/- posting a -21. That is a direct correlation in his defensive ability. I get so frustrated when I hear somebody call him "an elite defender." You don't just go from horrible one on one defender to elite defender in 1 season. Some may think I'm totally wrong about Klay, but I will wait to hear and better yet see a counter argument. As for Steph Curry, once again he looked average having a below par shooting night, after having his huge 38 point game in Game 4, he was over-shadowed by Kyrie's 41 points in Game 5. He has only played like the MVP once in this series. I think he will have another average night again tonight and wait to explode for Game 7.

Cavs win tonight and keep the series alive because LeBron will have another near triple double, Kyrie will have an average game, Kevin Love, JR Smith and the bench will be the difference. My special stat to watch is the number of 3's JR Smith makes. 5 or more and the Cavs win. For the Warriors, I think Klay will have a bad game, Steph will start hot and cool off, and my X factor for the Warriors tonight is Iggy and Livingston. Both need bounce back games. Cavs still win in a very tight game.

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