Big-name injury woes plague both Finals squads

OAKLAND, Calif. — Well, there’s always Game 2 for the Warriors’ Andre Iguodala.

And still maybe Game 1 for the Cavaliers Kevin Love.

On the eve of the start of their attempt to win a repeat championship and a third in four years — all against the Cavaliers — the Warriors announced Wednesday that Iguodala, the 2015 Finals MVP, will

miss Game 1 then be reevaluated before Game 2 because of a bruised left leg. Iguodala is making progress but is still plagued by pain from the bone bruise and nerve inflammation around his knee

“Just trying to get back as soon as possible so just keep grinding away at the process,” said Iguodala,

who claimed he expects to return — “not that far away” — during the series. “Just trying to figure out how to move in general. Making some progress. It’s slower than we expected.”

Iguodala, one of Golden State’s best defenders who would figure to get a lot of LeBron James on his plate, missed the last four games of the Western Conference finals victory over Houston.

And the other key injured player in the series, Love, was excused from

Wednesday’s media availability session as he remains in the NBA’s concussion protocol. Love missed Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals win over Boston after he collided in Game 6 with the Celtics’ Jayson Tatum. His status remains undecided for the Finals start, but coach Tyronn Lue was hopeful the forward would be ready.

“I hope so. I’m still not sure,” Lue said Wednesday at Oracle Arena. “He’s going to go do some things today

and see how he feels. But he is in the protocol still, so we’ll see how he feels.”

Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith repeatedly stressed his respect for the Warriors. He was asked if he were surprised the champs rallied from 3-2 down and beat the Rockets on the road in Game 7.

“Anybody tells you they were surprised by that, they’re lying. Ain’t no way,” Smith said. “If anything, I was surprised it got to that point with them.”

The Cavs’ Jeff Green had gratitude as his prime theme Wednesday. Sure, he’s grateful to be in the Finals. He’s also grateful to be alive. Six years ago, he underwent heart surgery.

“When I had to go through the surgery, I always sat around and tried to figure out why, what was the reason,” Green said. “So I had to figure out the ‘why? What was God’s plan?’ This is it, to spread my story.”