NBA Finals: How Cavs Won, Will Win

Before Game 2 of the NBA Finals we at King James Gospel had focused on the positives and the hope we had for the Cleveland Cavaliers. While the world was counting out this rag tag bunch of players, around the supernova that is LeBron James, we believed the Cavs had a chance. Even though they were facing an offensive juggernaut in the Golden State Warriors, we believe in OUR team.

This morning the narrative hasn’t changed much. LeBron is even more amazing than many thought he was. The Cavs are just scrappy. They can’t keep it up. The Warriors have let them win. Blah, Blah, Blah.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have a real chance of winning the NBA Title, no matter what any local or national narrative says. The Cavs have led this series for basically two-thirds of it. So while most would say that the Warriors are the dominate team, this stat tells us otherwise:

The Cavs are an inch on Iman Shumpert‘s late jumper in Game 1 from being up 2-0 in the NBA Finals.

So the question is “How did the Cavs win?” Which then leads to the question “How can the Cavs continue to win?”

If you follow me or the site on Twitter you have already heard some of this through our Periscope video series we do every game. Before and after every game, as well as after every quarter, we bring you live video reaction via the Periscope app that you can download on your IPhone or Android. You can also just click the links when we put it up and watch it live online. You can still watch replays from last night on the app, the videos stay up for 24 hours.

Now on to the ways the Cavs won and will continue to win:

LeBron James

Starting with the most obvious. LeBron James is really good at the game of basketball. He draws a ton of attention, makes plays for others and can score. He can still defend at a high level even with all that he is asked to do on the offensive end.

With Kyrie Irving injured, LeBron has become more inefficient based on what the Cavs need from him. It has worked out as last night he posted an amazing triple double stat line of 39 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists while playing 50 minutes.

Defense

The Cleveland Cavaliers held the mighty Golden State Warriors to 93 points, at home, in overtime. The Warriors are averaging 104 points per game in the NBA Playoffs, down from their otherworldly 110 points a game during the Regular Season. Yet here the Cavs are holding them under 100 points at home, which only happened once during the Regular Season, even with the extra Overtime period.

The Cavs defense has stepped way up since the Playoffs began. They were allowing 99 points a game during the season but have dropped that down to 94 points a game in the Playoffs, against the best of the best teams. They have only allowed opponents to shoot 29% from behind the 3 point line and their rotations have been crisp.

Rebounding

Tristan Thompson is a tenacious rebounder. His goal is that no one outworks him on the court. His Dennis Rodman impersonation, minus the wedding dress and crazy antics, has been spot on. It isn’t just TT that has gotten the job done though. Timofey Mozgov has been a pain with his raw strength and size on the boards, LeBron is aggressive in rebounding and the guards stick their nose in quite frequently.

A pretty basic stat: When the Cavs win the rebounding battle, they win the game. Especially against the Warriors, rebounding is the key to controlling the tempo. If the Warriors try to get out and run, they are likely to give up numerous offensive rebounds. If they try force the issue to get offensive boards, fighting Thompson, Mozgov and LeBron for them seems a bit pointless sometimes, they risk James running the break toward an epic dunk.

Adjustments

Some are slight. Some are bigger. David Blatt and his staff, which I include LeBron as a part of, have made adjustments all Playoffs long. Adjusting to losing Kevin Love. Adjusting to losing Kyrie Irving. Adjusting to Pau Gasol lighting them up. Adjusting from the Boston Celtics physical, under talented team to the Chicago Bulls physical, talented team, to the Atlanta Hawks system and now the Warriors.

The Cavs have made the right adjustments even by starting Thompson, after trying Mike Miller in place of Love, keeping Shumpert in the starting lineup after Smith’s suspension and going with Matthew Dellavedova last night even though he struggled in Game 1.

Add to that the adjustments all season long from the Big 3 and a bunch of nothing, to adding the New 3 and becoming the offensive destroyers to this new defensive powerhouse. The Cavs have adjusted, transformed greatly over the course of the season.

Role Players

Finally the Cavs have had role players step up at different times during different games. Whether it is Delly, James Jones, Mozgov, Thompson, J.R. or Shumpert, the Cavs have gotten production, on both ends of the floor, from someone every game. The Cavs may not have 1 other guy to rely on besides LeBron but they find at least 1 other guy to make contributions.

Last night it was clutch shots by Jones, Smith and Delly. It was Mozgov’s imposing his physical will on the undersized interior of the Warriors. It was Delly’s defense against the reigning MVP. The Cavs can count on production, off of LeBron James, because they have had it all Playoffs long.

So what does that mean going forward?

It means the Cavs can win an NBA Title without 2 of their 3 best players. It means that all the people writing the Cavs off after Game 1, a lot due to the Irving injury, have to retract some very definitive statements. It means anything can happen.

Why are we so sure?

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No matter where the Cavs play, the things listed above travel with them well. LeBron James travels with them. Defense and rebounding, and the effort that goes with it, travels with them. Making adjustments on the fly travels with them. A role player or two contributing will travel with them. Shooting, ball movement and relying on a specific role player doesn’t always travel. That is the Warriors game, not ours.

The old saying that “Defense wins championships” might be a bit outdated. “Defense plus LeBron James wins championships” may be more accurate.

What do you think has and will help the Cavs win in the NBA Finals?

Next: Before Game 2: What if the Cavs win Game 2?