Two of the best go head-to-head

T

he NBA Finals is finally upon us. After 75 thrilling post-season games, surprises, season-ending injuries and upsets involving 16 teams, Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers are set to battle for the 2015 Larry O’Brian trophy in a best-of-seven Finals, beginning on 4 June at Oracle Arena in Oakland.
This is more than a battle between two franchises trying to resurface from their modest historical results, this is a battle between two of the best basketball players on the planet.
It is a Stephen Curry versus LeBron James showdown.
While the Cavaliers (53-29) finished second in the Eastern Conference behind the Atlanta Hawks (60-22), they had no major problems in sweeping the Hawks in four games in the Conference Finals.
Cleveland Cavaliers couldn’t have made a major statement of their championship intentions after sweeping Boston in the first-round, dispatching Chicago in six games before closing out the Conference Finals with a 118-88 victory over the Hawks, who had won a team-record 60 games during the regular-season.

Although the Cavaliers have advanced to the NBA Finals for the second time in franchise history, they have never won a title, and have only one Finals appearance, in 2007, to their name.
Looking back on the Cavaliers’ season, they started off with a disappointing season opener 95-90 home defeat against the New York Knicks, with All-Star Carmelo Anthony leading the visitors with 25 points.
Things got a bit worse for the Cavaliers following a disappointing 19-20 start to the season, leaving most doubting their championship credentials under first-year coach David Blatt who had a successful coaching career in Europe, but had never coached in the USA.
Despite some criticism, Blatt’s job was never in danger as Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert eventually revealed: “This was a guy with a long-term record of success. You have to at least give a season, maybe more than just one. I think it would have destabilized the entire franchise and it would have been bad.”
Meanwhile, by mid January, and a few crucial trades, including the arrivals of Timofey Mozgov, JR Smith and Iman Shumpert, the Cavaliers became a statement after posting an NBA-best record of 34-9.
On a number of occasions, LeBron James was seen running and drawing the Cavaliers plays, but that has not bothered Blatt, at all.
When asked to discuss his NBA experience and relationship with superstar LeBron James, Blatt noted after Game 4 against the Hawks: “LeBron came home, and I left home to come here.”
“This is a new place and a new situation for me.
“I left a lot of people that I love dearly in order to pursue a dream. That's a big sacrifice on the part of my family and where I'm from.”
On the other hand, the Warriors reached the Finals for the first time after winning the 1975 Championship.
But when the Warriors announced the resignation of much-loved head coach Mark Jackson few predicted that first-year coach Steve Kerr could have inspired his team to a franchise winning record.
Golden State, propelled by MVP Stephen Curry, finished with the best record in the regular-season (67-15) to become a legitimate title contender.
The Warriors went beyond just a scoring machine to become the No 1 defensive team in the league.
Unlike the Cavaliers who lost two of their 14 playoff games (12-2), the Warriors (12-3) swept New Orleans in the first-round, bounced-back from a 2-1 deficit against Memphis before wrapping up the series in six games.
Eventually, the Warriors dispatched Houston in the Conference Finals in five games.
The Warriors' championships journey had already begun around 2012 when the team in that year’s draft brought in Harrison Barnes, Draymond Green and Festus Ezeli, all of whom played prominent roles in the victory on Wednesday night.
When the Finals begin on early on Friday morning, 5 June, four-time MVP LeBron James will be playing his fifth straight NBA Finals after clinching two championships with the Miami Heat.
James is a 12-year veteran who can count endless individual awards.
Newly voted MVP Curry's biggest weapon is his long-range shooting and ball handling.
Curry can literally score from anywhere on the court, and that means a defender cannot leave his side when he has the ball.
Discussing the highly-anticipated match-up, Curry said of James: “Five straight Finals appearances. We've got to bring our ‘A’ game if we're going to beat a great team and a great player like that four times. We're excited about the challenge. He had to win his first one at some point. Nobody on our team has experienced that, so we're going to be fighting like crazy every night.”