3 takeaways from Game 3 vs. Warriors

“Listen, at the end of the day, I’m living in the moment now”.

In fact, no National Basketball Association playoff team has ever lost after being up 3-0.

The difference past year was team defense, as they held Golden State’s other four starters to 16 points or less, with the backcourt of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combining for 27 on 8-of-24 shooting, including 6-of-19 from beyond the three-point arc.

Several NBA teams, who have enough salary cap space to sign two maximum-salaried players, would surely love the idea of having Kevin Durant and LeBron James on their team. “Just try to keep our composure as best we can because close-out games are the hardest things that you can ever experience in the playoffs”.

By the time the first half ended with Cleveland up by six, the Warriors had chipped away at big Cavaliers leads twice, thanks mostly to Durant, who had 24 points in the half. Yet the cumulative effect on multiple journeys adds up, and we have felt that this year. It’s an incredible opportunity. The mystery is gone, and Golden State – which hasn’t lost four consecutive games in the same season since 2013, back when Mark Jackson was coaching the Warriors instead of calling their games on ABC and ESPN – needs only to avoid an apocalyptic collapse to win their third title in four years. The only suspense left and the only riveting narrative after J.R. Smith’s accounting error, is who will be named Finals MVP.

LeBron James might be playing his last game as a member of the Cavaliers on Friday night.

“You can’t have mistakes, they’re not going to beat themselves”, he continued. You can’t have flaws.

It’s a similar tale this year, James saying Thursday the Warriors simply have more talent than his Cavaliers.

“I guess because you are comfortable”, he said. “But our focus is not on winning 4”. Eastern, but you can stream Game 4 here.

He took close to $10 million less than what he could have earned on a max salary a year ago. “And if I find, and my committee finds, that they’re unfairly treated, then we will pardon them or at least let them out”. “In some cases you nearly have to be flawless”. He picked the right time to be dominant, since Steph Curry and Klay Thompson shot a combined 3-for-15 in the first half. “So we understand that and learn from it”, Green said. Cleveland feeds off the thunder of their crowd, where they had won eight straight in the playoffs after dropping Game 1 of their first-round series with the Indiana Pacers, and the speakers in this three-tier arena downtown boomed. They come off a pick-and-roll and he just stopped behind and pulled four or five feet behind the 3-point line.

In Game 2, Curry was involved in a season-high 40 ball screens and everything good the Warriors did went through him, especially torching Kevin Love.

The Cavs vow to answer the bell. “We’ve got to go out there and give everything we’ve got”.

LBJ was full of praise for his fellow small forward after the game, calling him “one of the best players I’ve ever played against, that this league has ever seen”.