The NBA Finals are upon us and it should be a doozy. Jordan Santos previews Golden State vs. Cleveland with his top five reasons to watch:
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1. The two best players in the world will be playing
Steph Curry and LeBron James are undeniably the two best players in basketball right now. Curry won the Most Valuable Player award after averaging 23.8 points, 6.4 assists and 2 steals per game, and leading the Warriors to the best record in the NBA (67-15). Curry has been historic from the three-point line this season as he broke his own regular season record with 272 threes! Curry’s remarkable play has continued in the playoffs. Curry broke Reggie Miller’s record of 58 three-pointers in just 13 games this postseason, which took Miller 22 games to achieve. He is the most dangerous offensive player on the most explosive offensive team. If Curry gets hot the Cavaliers will be in trouble.
Do not sleep on King James though. There is a reason this man has been to five straight NBA Finals! Even though Curry was the MVP this season, it is hard to argue that he is a better overall player than James, who has added four MVPs to his already brilliant resume. LeBron led a Cavaliers team through a tougher than expected Eastern Conference playoffs. The fact that James took a young and inexperienced Cavaliers team to the Finals in his first season is a testament to how special LeBron is.
2. Both fanbases are starving for a championship
Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA has been by far the loudest arena during the playoffs. The fans go especially crazy after a three-pointer, which happens a lot during a Warriors game! The Warriors have the home-court advantage against the Cavaliers, which is bad for LeBron and company since the Warriors only lost two regular seasons games at home all year! It’s been since Rick Barry played that the Warriors have won an NBA title. Warriors fans have been patient and they will definitely do their part to provide energy for their team.
The sports fans in the city of Cleveland have definitely paid their dues. Cleveland has waited longer than any city with at least three professional sports teams to win a title. The last time Cleveland won a championship was in 1964 when the Browns won the NFL Championship. The last five years have been especially hard for Cavaliers fans. Losing LeBron James in 2010 and watching him win two titles with the Miami Heat must have been torturous for Cavs fans. Now that they have King James back, Cleveland is ready to start winning championships,
3. Riley Curry is America’s new star
Stephen Curry’s daughter Riley made Twitter explode after game 5 of the Western Conference Finals. Riley was the top trend on Twitter and Facebook, because of her hilarious and adorable behavior at the postgame press conference.
Here is a video of all of the best moments.
4. Lil B “The Based God” and his NBA curses
Lil B a.k.a. “The Based God” is a Bay-area rapper from the group “The Pack” who is a Warriors fan. Lil has become a Twitter sensation after first cursing Kevin Durant with the “Based God Curse” after Durant called him the worst rapper in the history of music. Lil B has cursed James Harden after Harden was caught mimicking one of Lil B’s dances. Lil B has said he might curse the Cavaliers, so let’s see if that curse affects their chances.
5. Both teams will be contenders for many years
The Warriors and Cavaliers will be back to The Finals for many years to come.
Both teams have very young rosters with centerpieces like James, Curry, Irving and Thompson that they can build around for the next five years.
Get familiar with both teams, ladies and gentlemen, because they will be competing for a championship year after year for the foreseeable future.
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Photo Credit: Twitter