NBA Finals: Warriors or Thunder Tougher for Cavs?

For the NBA Finals, who should the Cleveland Cavaliers want to face?

The Cleveland Cavaliers have defeated the Toronto Raptors 113-87 in Game 6 to be crowned the Eastern Conference Finals champions for the second year in a row. Consequently, they are awaiting the winner of the Golden State Warriors versus the Oklahoma City Thunder in their Western Conference Finals match-up to determine their opponent in the 2016 NBA Finals.

Most Cavs fans are looking forward to the Thunder beating the Warriors as the latter has given the team more problems during the regular season and through last year’s Finals. Golden State beat Cleveland both times during their only regular season meetings while the Thunder are 0-2 against them.

Based on their recent history, you would think that the Thunder would be an easier opponent for the Cavs. But that’s the regular season. The playoffs are another matter altogether. When teams match up in the playoffs, there’s more time to prepare for your opponent with players and coaches more familiar with one another as well.

After the first two rounds of the playoffs and the first two games of the East Finals, the Cavs looked unstoppable on their way to the NBA Finals. Then, Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan showed up in games 3 and 4 of their series and showed us one of the Cavs’ weakness—strong guard play.

Lowry is the barometer by which to measure the Raptors’ success. As Lowry goes, so do the Raptors. For the series, he averaged 20.2 points per game with 27.5 during the wins.

If the Cavs are already having a tough time containing Lowry, how much tougher will it be for them to guard the athletic and all-around brilliance of the Thunder’s Russell Westbrook? The point guard has been averaging a LeBron-like 28.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 11.0 assists in the five games against the Warriors.

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Kevin Durant (30.8 points, 8.4 rebounds.), meanwhile, has been killing the Warriors with a performance that would have earned him MVP votes had he played this well in the regular season. From one clutch performance to another, Durant has showcased his grit and determination throughout these playoffs.

Both he [Durant] and Westbrook are going to be tough to cover for the Cavs, with LeBron James and Kyrie Irving tasked with the responsibility to stop them, respectively.

Both he and Westbrook are going to be tough to cover for the Cavs, with LeBron James and Kyrie Irving tasked with the responsibility to stop them, respectively. While James has shown that he can handle his business with Durant, Irving will have to work harder than he has ever had to in these playoffs versus Westbrook.

At the same time, the Thunder are showing that they can play small ball with the Warriors and are, in fact, outplaying them. They have shown the resilience and toughness that was missing from the regular season where they lost 14 games after leading during the third quarter.

But the Thunder are a different basketball team now after dismantling the 67-15-win San Antonio Spurs in the second round in six games. They also have the opportunity to finish off the Warriors in six games on their home floor in Oklahoma City.

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Rob Mahoney of Sports Illustrated also believes that the Cavs will have a much tougher time facing off against the Thunder.

The Cavs, however, are going to be a difficult team for either the Thunder or the Warriors to match up with as well after the Eastern champs have shown the ability to hit a record-breaking number of threes and have learned to play well off of one another even during clutch situations.

But if the Cavaliers are (secretly) going to pick a team between the two Western teams, the Thunder could be one that they will be wishing will lose the series especially with the Warriors’ uneven play of late.

Regardless of who wins, Cleveland is hungry for a championship and whoever they face better be ready for them.

Who should the Cavs want to face in the NBA Finals?