Nobody Expected What We’ve Seen So Far in the NBA’s Conference Finals
Who knew? Certainly not me!
A waltz to the NBA Finals for the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers is not happening. Oh, they may get there, but it’s no dance.
- For the Cavs it’s an unexpected struggle just to find a place to move on a crowded dance floor.
- For the Warriors, right now they can’t even get there. They’ve been wallflowers.
I thought Cleveland was too mighty for the Raptors, who were game enough to oust the Heat in a deciding game. The Cavs are in a dog-fight with Toronto. Lebron and his gang after winning 10 straight playoff games have come back down to earth.
We’ve seen this before from Cleveland.
The real stunner is Golden State. Only 73-9 in the regular season, the best all-time, they have dropped two in a row for the first time this season. I wonder whether they’re exhausted from posing that amazing record.
Now that they’re playing a top-notch practically every other day, it just may be too much. Let’s make it clear. It’s not only about the Warriors and their state of mind. As the great Red Auerbach of the Celtics always said ” it’s not solitaire out there”.
The play of your opponent can make you look off your game. I think OKC is playing marvelous basketball. They have had the answer to the Golden State machine so far. How about the job Billy Donovan is doing in his first year as a pro coach?
I also wonder what the price is of achieving that phenomenal record in the regular season. When you look at how Gregg Popovich approaches the 82-game schedule with his Spurs, often not suiting up his stars so they are rested for the playoffs, you have to consider the big question. What does it matter if you have the best record, even the best record ever, if you don’t win the championship?
But that is second-guessing. In a way, not fair. Keep in mind, the series isn’t over, even if the Warriors have a long uphill climb.
But without question, nobody expected what we’ve seen so far in the NBA’s Conference Finals.
