Jordan can wait: First, James must find way to top Warriors
Almost everything in life moves at a faster pace now. So in an instant gratification society, it makes sense that Stephen Curry’s 3-point shooting wizardry and the Golden State Warriors’ warpspeed offense are capturing the public’s imagination.
At the same time, LeBron James is the most powerful basketball player on the planet, and the public is in awe of him as well.
Cleveland and Golden State form the perfect NBA Finals pair. The feud features two big-time stars and will play well on TV, blow up Twitter and energize Las Vegas sports books.
I hope the series goes seven games, and I’m betting it will. After this, the rest of the summer will play out at a painfully slow pace.
“It does help an otherwise relatively slow June. The more games, the better,” said Jimmy Vaccaro, oddsmaker at the South Point sports book. “It’s a good year for the NBA, and I think the right teams are in it. These are the two teams the bookmakers want.”
After this, it’s all baseball, golf and more talk about the woman formerly known as Bruce Jenner. It could be a long summer. It would be best if Curry and James go the distance.
“I’m hoping it’s a competitive, entertaining and long series,” Westgate Las Vegas oddsmaker Jeff Sherman said. “It’s good for us and good for the bettors.”
It’s a classic matchup because Golden State is the NBA’s best team, proven over the course of a long season against better competition in the West, but James is the best player and is capable of physically dominating.
How great is James? Not greater than Michael Jordan. Not yet, at least.
This is James’ fifth straight Finals appearance, after going 2-2 in the previous four with Miami. When he last went with Cleveland in 2007, the Cavaliers got swept.
It’s a stretch to say LeBron’s legacy is on the line, because when all is said and done, he might be crowned the greatest to ever play the game.
But he’s not the greatest now, and if he loses this series, he will be 2-4 in the Finals. The Jordan-led Chicago Bulls went 6-0 in the Finals, with Jordan earning Most Valuable Player awards all six times, but it’s easy for the younger generation to forget the details of the past.
“We get caught up in the moment, like everything else in life,” Vaccaro said.
In the 1993 Finals against the Phoenix Suns, Jordan averaged 41.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 6.3 assists in six games. No opponent was able to force the Bulls to seven games in the Finals in the 1990s.
It’s true Jordan had stronger supporting casts and a far sharper coach in Phil Jackson. In Cleveland, James has lifted up weaker teammates while basically coaching the team, too. James is bigger, stronger and faster. But Jordan always played with a killer instinct that James did not begin to develop until recently.
“LeBron is tugging at his shorts right now,” Vaccaro said. “I got Jordan ahead. There’s absolutely no doubt that before LeBron, they weren’t even smelling Michael’s sneakers. It’s a crazy conversation that you have to win rings to prove yourself, but even if LeBron doesn’t win this, I still put him right there.”
The Jordan-James debate is a barstool topic. James, in this Finals, has an opportunity to make a bold statement because he’s the underdog.
Golden State, as a minus-210 series favorite, seems to be the wiseguys’ side. The betting public is banking on LeBron to play superhero.
“I would be really surprised if Cleveland is able to win four times,” Sherman said. “I don’t think it’s going to be easy, but to me Golden State is the definitive choice. Most of the guys I talk to and I respect are betting Golden State. The public is just enthralled with getting LeBron at 2-1 odds.”
I see the public’s viewpoint. Even with star forward Kevin Love lost to injury and point guard Kyrie Irving hobbled by a knee injury, the Cavaliers are 12-2 in the playoffs, albeit against feeble competition in the East.
James makes his teammates better, and he makes them believe.
Cleveland ranks first in transition offense efficiency (1.27 points per possession) in this postseason and second in transition defense (0.95 ppp allowed), according to NBA. com/Stats. Will those numbers hold up against Curry, Klay Thompson and the Warriors’ shooters?
One thing is certain: James, who has hit just 17.6 percent of his 3-point attempts in the playoffs, needs to make more jumpers if the Cavaliers are going to keep the pace.
“I’m not convinced the Warriors will run roughshod in this series,” said The Gold Sheet handicapper Bruce Marshall. “This is going to be their toughest test.”
Golden State, 39-2 at home in the regular season, is a 6-point favorite in today’s Game 1. The series price, Vaccaro said, is attracting “unbelievable action” on both sides.
“The smarts I talk to, maybe one or two more like Golden State,” Vaccaro said. “LeBron at 2-1 (odds), that’s not the worst place in the world to make a bet. I don’t know why the Cavs can’t be in it. Would you be surprised with any outcome of the series? If the Cavs sweep, I don’t think that would happen.”
And James will not get swept this time. He’s far too good, playing the best basketball of his life at the moment.
Sherman said, “I think it will be Golden State in 7.”
My prediction is the same. The 2-2-1-1-1 Finals format would put Game 6 in Cleveland, and it’s doubtful LeBron would lose it.
It’s not about James being better than Jordan. It’s about James being superior to the Warriors, and hopefully we get the answer in a Game 7. Las Vegas Review-Journal sports betting columnist Matt Youmans can be reached at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907. He co-hosts “The Las Vegas Sportsline” weekdays at 2 p.m. on ESPN Radio (1100 AM). Follow him on Twitter: @ mattyoumans247.