Warriors’ locker room showers didn’t have hot water after victory in Cleveland

So, the Cavaliers remain the favorite to get out of the East this season, but that position is not almost as unassailable as it’s been ever since James came back to Cleveland. With the roster almost healthy, the Cavs dropped three straight games.

Golden State were missing Steph Curry for that game but still came out with the win and have won eight of their 10 games since.

These two teams couldn’t be headed in more opposite directions. Love was 6-of-8 and one of the most risky perimeter snipers through that 21-point rout that kept the Cavs from being swept.

“Yeah”, coach Tyronn Lue said flatly, when asked if his team remains the best in the East, despite having the third best record.

Well, this season, they’ve lost seven of nine since their Christmas Day defeat at Golden State.

James led the Cavs with 32 points on 12-for-18 shooting, eight boards, six assists and four vicious blocks, but he went just 4-for-8 at the line in the second half and committed eight turnovers on the night.

Teammate Kevin Durant comes in third overall, with worldwide sensations Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kristaps Porzingis rounding out the top five.

Here’s how well the Warriors are cooking. Can they close the gap to this historic Golden State team even if they do make a blockbuster trade?

Cleveland’s recent slide has dropped them to the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference behind the Boston Celtics and Toronto Raptors and LeBron James ripped into the team, saying they’re “not ready” for the playoffs. And it starts with ball movement. The registered just two field goals and a free throw in the following four minutes, forty.

It hasn’t been his fault – although the undersized star has struggled to find his shot of late, going 5-for-26 from the floor over his last two outings, including a 1-for-11 mark from beyond the arc. The real push came in a shutdown fourth quarter, where a second unit limited Cleveland’s opportunities from the perimeter with fast closeouts and smart contains, letting the rest of the starters finish it out in the last 5:30 of regulation. Day game in 2017.

The Cavaliers and Warriors have faced off in the NBA Finals for the past three seasons, something that has never been done before in NBA history.

Golden State didn’t even need to shoot well from long range either – 37.5 per cent – to put up 118 points. The Warriors are 6-2 against Cleveland with Durant on the roster. Cleveland finished with 17 points in the quarter on 6-for-23 shooting. That means sticking James or Jae Crowder on him at all times. They rank 29th in defensive efficiency (per NBA.com).

There was cause for celebration for the Cavaliers’ Jeff Green, however, who scored his 10,000th career point.

Beating Golden State takes a team effort.

That said, KD and the Warriors were in high spirits after handing the Cavs another loss and most found the lack of hot water humorous, if anything. The Timberwolves and Spurs are both 3.5 games behind the Rockets, while the Oklahoma City Thunder (24-20) have improved to fifth place in the West.

The Warriors seem to be on another level than the Cavs, whose problems this year seem greater than in years past.