The Cleveland Cavaliers are down 2-0 in the NBA Finals for the second straight year. Game three will be tonight in Cleveland starting at 8 p.m. Eastern time on ABC. The Cavaliers looked overmatched in the first two games of the series, but now they are on their home court. The Cavaliers will look to win tonight to make these Finals a bit more interesting.
The first two games were indicative that the Warriors are the superior team. LeBron James has been nothing but outstanding in the finals so far, but it’s the role players that are not doing anything.
If Cleveland wants to make this a competitive series, then they will have to play a near-perfect game. If they are unable to, then the series might just be over in 4 games. But one thing fans can never do is count out LeBron James.
What Cavs need to do to win Game 3
The Cleveland Cavaliers are getting owned by the Golden State Warriors. Golden State scored 132 points in game two to take a 2-0 series lead. The game was competitive through two and a half quarters until the Warriors kicked it into another gear. The Cavaliers did not have an answer for Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, or Klay Thompson. The series now moves from Oakland to Cleveland. The Cavaliers have a very tall task in trying to stop the Golden State Warriors.
Cleveland will need all of their players to play at an even higher level. Their defense has to be a heck of a lot better too.
Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love will have to be even better than they have been. Tristan Thompson has to be the muscle inside because Cleveland does not have the depth up front to compete against the Warriors.
J.R. Smith needs to find his shooting stroke and knock down some threes to allow other players to get open uncontested shots.
Iman Shumpert, Richard Jefferson, Kyler Korver, Deron Williams and Channing Fyre all have to be able to play good quality minutes off the bench. They have been able to make shots and give Cleveland some much-needed help.
And finally, LeBron James needs to be the best player on the floor at all times. His defense needs to fuel his offense and vice versa. James will need his supporting cast to step up, but he will also need to step up.
Prediction of Game 3
The Warriors will enter Cleveland and record their first loss. It will be a very close game, but LeBron James will be able to lead his crew to a victory. It will not be easy as Golden State will know what to expect, but the Cavaliers will win. The bench players will play better as well as the complementary players. The big three of James, Irving, and Love will all have their best game of the series. Cleveland will take the Warriors down by the score of 106 to 101.