DURANT, WARRIORS DOMINANT AS FINALS OPEN ON A BLOWOUT
The negative narrative will always be that Kevin Durant came to the Golden State Warriors to join a slew of all-stars to help pave the way to his first NBA title. But in Game 1, Durant showed no signs of letting anyone do the earning for him.
With the Cleveland Cavaliers hell-bent on guarding the threepoint line, Durant — particularly in the first half — took full advantage in the paint by hitting runners, converting lobs and hammering home far too many uncontested dunks at the rim for any Cleveland fan’s liking as the Warriors set the tone in a 113-91 win.
Stephen Curry, who was rather quiet — for him — through the first 24 minutes came out in the third and got his game going with 14 points in the third quarter alone to stretch an eightpoint Warriors lead to 21 after three quarters. Curry wound up with 28 points and 10 assists.
Durant put up 23 points, six assists and four rebounds in the first half alone on his way to his 38-point night.
He’s still three wins away from that elusive first title, but if the Warriors get it and he continues to play at this kind of level, it’s going to be very hard for the Durant detractors to suggest he didn’t do his part to earn it.
LeBron James wasn’t far behind with 19 of his own in the first 24 minutes, but where James had just one other scorer in the Cavs lineup supporting him offensively in Kyrie Irving, Durant had Curry and a much stronger bench on his side. James had 28 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists in a statistically fine evening of play that you know James won’t be celebrating.
On top of that, the Warriors were ultra-protective of the rock throughout the evening. In the first half, they turned the ball over just once while their superior defence forced 12 first-half turnovers by the Cavaliers. It all added up to an entertaining but not unexpected Game 1 result.
The surprise may have been how dominant Durant was in his first Finals game with the Warriors. He was a solid 10 for 18 in the first half, finishing at 13 for 25 for 38 points along with eight assists and eight rebounds.
The Cavs were successful in limiting the Warriors’ threepoint game, holding them to just 10 for 30 from behind the arc. Klay Thompson was single-handedly responsible for five of those misses as his playoff struggles continued with another tough night of shooting, ending the night just three for 16 from the field for six points.
Thompson, though, was strong on the other end, as were the rest of the Warriors.
The turnover battle told a lot of the tale in one of the more lopsided battles of the night. The four turnovers by the Warriors tied the NBA Finals mark for fewest in a game, done twice before last night — by the San Antonio Spurs in 2013 and the Detroit Pistons in 2005.
But Durant was the story, setting the early tone and finishing with a strong fourth to quash any thoughts of a comeback.
The Cavs just never seemed comfortable in this one beyond the opening seven or eight minutes. Once the Warriors determined the Cavs were going to protect the three-point line at all costs, it just meant open looks inside for Durant.
When the Cavs tried to adjust in the third quarter, the ball just found its way to Curry, and he torched them from behind the three-point line with four treys in that frame alone.
The lead got as big as 24 points, but was in double digits from the early portion of the third quarter and never did get back below 12.
If there is a bright spot for the Cavs, it is that rarely do James’ teams start out the Finals with a win.
In fact, Thursday night’s loss was their seventh in eight Finals openers.
The two teams will now have two days off to digest this one before Game 2 on Sunday.