NBA Finals Game 3: 7 Things We Learned

In Game 3 of the NBA Finals, the Cleveland Cavaliers turned the tables. What we learned is big.

The Cavs got back into the series with an impressive 120-90 win over the Golden State Warriors in game 3. The Cavaliers started off strong and never let the Warriors get within an arm’s length of their lead.

It has been a weird series thus far. Besides game 1 which was close for the first three quarters of the game, every game this series has been lopsided. Blowouts have been a trend throughout the entire playoffs. The Finals are certainly no exception.

Here’s what we learned from this blowout.

1. Andrew Bogut is a liability for the Warriors.

The big adjustment Steve Kerr made in last year’s Finals was going small at the end of the series. Kerr may have to go back to that again.

Bogut did an excellent job of protecting the rim in game 2, but he showed that he had no business on the floor with the Cavs’ small lineup. Cleveland had two big runs in the very beginning of the game and the beginning of the second half. Both of those runs came with Bogut on the floor. As a result he was a minus 21 in just 12 minutes of play. That’s a minus 1.75 per minute. That’s awful.

The Warriors have played their best all series when they’ve gone small. There’s no point for Kerr to continue to run Bogut out there. I would expect Kerr to move Bogut to the bench for game 4.

2. J.R. Smith is back offensively.

Smith wasn’t himself offensively during the first two games. Game 3 was a different story. He finished with 20 points on 7 of 13 shooting and was 5 for 10 from deep.

Smith has come under fire for his poor offensive start to the Finals, but that really is unfair. There is more to basketball than just shooting 3 pointers. Smith has become a much more rounded player recently, and the Finals are proving it.

Smith has taken it upon himself to keep Klay Thompson in check. Through the first three games of the series, Thompson is shooting 37% from the field and is averaging 12 points a game when Smith is guarding him. That’s pretty good considering the Warriors won two games by double digits.

The Cavaliers’ offense was stagnant the first two games. Spot up shooters like Smith aren’t going to get good looks when there’s no ball movement. Smith shouldn’t be criticized for not shooting contested jump-shots. The Cavs did a much better job of moving the ball in game 3 and had 23 assists as a result. Because they were moving the ball better, Smith was able to get good looks, and he took them.

The Cavs desperately need Smith’s 3 point shooting this series. The Warriors have a great offense. There will be games where the Cavs need to win by outshooting Golden State. But, for Smith to provided that long distance threat there must be ball movement. He can’t hurt teams with his lethal jump-shot if Kyrie and LeBron are taking turns running isolation sets.

3. Matthew Dellavedova continues to struggle this series.

Delly became a folk-hero after his performance in games 2 and 3 of the Finals last year. He built upon his great Finals last year and had his best season as a professional this year. However, Delly is really struggling in the Finals.

Dellavedova just hasn’t been himself this series. He has 11 points on 4 of 14 shooting with 4 assists this series. Delly also hasn’t been playing the solid defense we saw in last year’s Finals. Part of that is due to the fact he’s coming off of the bench this series instead of starting which means most of his minutes have come against Shaun Livingston which he is having a very hard time guarding given the height difference. All of these factors have resulted in Delly being a minus 43 this series.

The disparity between the Warriors’ bench and the Cavs’ bench is one of the reasons the Warriors are ahead in the series. Delly not being able to cover Shaun Livingston is part of the reason Golden State’s bench has been far superior. Livingston is 6’7″ and can elevate for his midrange shot at will when Delly is guarding him.

Dellavedova was a minus 10 in game 3 and was the only Cavalier player on the wrong side of the plus/minus. It is nearly impossible to be a minus 10 when your team wins by 30. That means the Cavs were 40 points better than Golden State when Dellavedova wasn’t on the floor. Also, Shaun Livingston was only a minus 3.

Going up against Livingston isn’t a matchup that is good for Delly. We saw Lue go away from using Delly with the second unit in the second half. Instead Lue had LeBron run the point. That may be the adjustment that is needed for the Cavs to keep the Warriors’ bench under control.

4. LeBron James isn’t going to let Steph Curry get anything easy in the paint, even after the whistle.

Curry was off his game in game 3. The unanimous MVP had 2 points and 3 turnovers at the half. While Curry finished with 19 points, most of that came when the game was already out of hand.

Curry attempted a layup after the whistle had blown, and LeBron wasn’t going to let that go down on his watch.

That looked like a clean block to me.

5. Kyrie Irving can get more assists than LeBron in a Finals’ game.

Irving had a rough series before game 3. He wasn’t able to beat defenders off of the dribble in the first two games and his jump-shot wasn’t falling. Game 3 was a different story.

The Kyrie we know and love was back for game 3. He finished with 30 points on 12 of 25 shooting and 8 assists.

Irving is at his best when he is playing aggressively on offense like he was game 3. He was able to find the right balance of pushing the pace, distributing the ball, and attacking in isolation.

A lot of times we point to Kyrie running isolation sets as a bad thing, but that’s not always the case. He is one of the best scorers in isolation, but he can’t consistently settle for isolation plays like he did in games 1 and 2.

Game 3 was different. Irving did a good job of distributing the ball and attacking when he had the chance to do so. If he can continue to find the right balance between pushing the pace, distributing the ball, and attacking in isolation like he did in game 3, the Cavs will be a tough team to beat.

6. Starting Richard Jefferson gives the Cavs’ more versatility defensively.

One of the biggest problems with the first two games was the Cavs lack of ability to switch on the Warriors’ pick and roll. They found themselves confused with trying to decide to stay with their assignment or switching. This lead to a montage of wide open back cuts and open shots.

Kevin Love is not to blame for all of those open baskets. He wasn’t the one constantly leaving his assignment open. However, starting Love this series may not be a good strategy.

We saw the Thunder have success defensively against the Warriors because they were able to easily switch on the Warriors’ screens. Starting Jefferson in place of Love, who missed game 3 because of concussion symptoms, allowed the Cavaliers to simply switch on screens. They didn’t do that the first two games largely to do with their lack of trust in Love’s ability to defend guards.

We’ve seen how Love is a good fit for the Cavs throughout the playoffs. He is a great scorer that can stretch the floor. However, given the Warriors’ offense and the Cavs’ lack of defense already this may be a series where the Cavs would be better off with bringing Love off the bench.

7. LeBron is still LeBron.

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James did not have a good first two games of the series. He looked like he couldn’t get to the rim anymore and his jump-shot wasn’t falling.

LeBron put that all behind him with a dominating game 3 performance. He finished with 32 points, 6 assists, and 11 boards.

He came out and dominated game 3 like we’ve grown to expect him to do. LeBron came out aggressive and attacked the basket looking for his shots. He is still nearly impossible to stop when he is aggressively attacking the basket like he was in game 3.

James may need to have heroic performances like this for the rest of the series if the Cavs’ want to win the series.

While Cleveland looked amazing in game 3, we must remember that it was only one game. This terrific performance will be a waste if they don’t come out and win game 4. As LeBron has already said, game 4 is also “do or die”.

What did you learn from NBA Finals Game 3?