NBA Finals: Behind Enemy Lines Before Game 1

The NBA Finals kickoff tonight so we went Behind Enemy Lines with Blue Man Hoop to learn more.

We cover the Cleveland Cavaliers to the best of our abilities but because of that do not have as much time to watch the rest of the league. Our guess is many of you are the same way.

This is especially true for West Coast teams whose games often start around our bedtime here in the Eastern Time Zone. So to try to get us ready for the NBA Finals, and likely throughout the Finals, we went to Blue Man Hoop, our FanSided Golden State Warriors site, for some insight:

1. Many Cavs fans believed they would have won last year if Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving were healthy, what was the sense out there?

The sense out here is that no one is denying that it would have been a tougher series with them on the floor. Would they have won? That’s tough to say, as even when that team was healthy, they didn’t seem to have that same chemistry on the court together as they do this year. Whether or not that’s a David Blatt thing remains to be seen.

2. How have the Warriors gotten THIS much better this season after a very good year last year?

Honestly, they’ve just started unloading from wherever and whenever they want. While that wouldn’t work for most teams, the Warriors have the full confidence of their coach. Keep in mind they got lucky in a lot of instances to get to 73 wins and that really is what helped them in their situation.

3. Draymond Green has been the focus of a ton of scrutiny, do Warriors fans get frustrated with his act?

He’s a guy you hate to play against and a guy you love to have on your team. The thing we love about Draymond is that he is one of the most accountable players in the league. When he has a bad game, he doesn’t shy away from it. He’s been open with the media and he hasn’t been afraid to hold himself accountable. In more instances than not, he’s been the best leader on this team.

4. What did the Thunder do to almost beat Golden State? Can the Cavs copy that formula?

The Thunder rocked Golden State with their size and athleticism on the floor. While the Warriors love to take ridiculous shots, the Thunder forced them to do nothing but that for a couple of games and the team couldn’t get anything going inside. They realized that they had to fight and scrap inside to get to where they needed to be in this series. The Cavaliers are really going to have to load the box down low. Also, the Thunder winning Game 1 changed the whole complexion.

5. If the Warriors lose this series it will be because….

If the Warriors lose this series against the Cavaliers, it will be because they got beat by a team that is just as good. The Cavaliers might have had less wins than the Warriors, but Cleveland is more along the lines of a 65 – 68 win team if they’re playing with Lue full season and not resting guys as much. The Warriors are more along the lines of a 65-68 win team, because let’s be honest, chasing history involves a lot of luck. The Cavaliers can shoot the ball from beyond the arc and if they get hot, the Warriors will have to keep hot.

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Then there’s the will of LeBron James. We all know what he did in the Finals last year. If he does that again, with a full team around him, the Cavaliers are going to be tough to beat.

6. What is your prediction for the NBA Finals?

It’s funny, because i was just talking about my rationale about my prediction to someone. Had the Warriors not struggled against the Thunder, I had Cavaliers in 7. Now, because the Warriors had their get smacked in the face moment, I’m rolling with the Warriors, because it’s hard to see them go down, when they didn’t blink with elimination in their face.