The Golden State Warriors are the 2017 NBA Champions! On Monday night, the team brought a 3-1 lead back to Oracle Arena with a bit of doubt creeping in after last year's crushing defeat. However, the team was able to outlast a fired up Cleveland Cavaliers team to grab a 129-120 victory in Game 5. That gave the Golden State Warriors their second NBA Championship within the past three seasons. Here's a look at how the Warriors were able to grab the Larry O'Brien trophy thanks to key performances from Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant.

How the Warriors won

The Bill Russell 2017 NBA Finals MVP Award was given out to Kevin Durant who is a former league MVP but never an NBA Champion. The award was given to the right man, as he once again helped lead this team to victory. In tonight's NBA Finals-winning performance, Durant scored 39 points on 14-for-20 shooting which included going 5-for-8 from three-point range. He also had seven rebounds, five assists, and a steal in the win. For KD it was a bit of redemption after receiving the role of "bad guy" when he left OKC and signed with Golden State in the off-season. However, now Durant has that NBA title that eludes so many of the game's greats.

In tonight's game, two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry also contributed mightily.

His 10-for-20 shooting performance was key as well as his 12-for-15 free throws. In the end, Curry finished with 34 points and also dished out 10 assists to teammates. The man who was the Warriors' Finals MVP two season ago, Andre Iguodala, ended up with 20 points off the bench to help his team.

LeBron James continued to play his heart out even in the losing effort.

James finished with 41 points, 13 rebounds, and eight assists. Kyrie Irving had 26 points and six assists, while J.R. Smith recorded seven three-pointers in the game and ended up with 25 points. Kevin Love had an off night, ending up with just six points and 10 rebounds in the effort.

For the game, the Cavs outshot the Warriors with a 53.3 percent rate compared to 51.1 percent.

The Warriors outrebounded Cleveland slightly, with a 42-40 edge. The two teams had nearly identical turnovers too, but when comparing the scores, it seems that a few more big three-pointers were the difference as the Warriors' firepower was once again too much. Hats off to Golden State who went 16-1 through the postseason, and also to the Cavs for still competing to the end.

What's up next?

That puts a wrap on the 2016-17 NBA season with the Golden State Warriors overtaking the Cleveland Cavaliers as the NBA Champions. It could mean that the Cavs will be trying to figure out what they need to do in order to compete with this powerful team. Will Cleveland look to bring in another All-Star to the mix?

Rumors have suggested Paul George or possibly Carmelo Anthony.

The NBA Draft is next on the schedule for the league as it will arrive on Thursday, June 22nd. These two teams won't be near the top of the selection order, so there will be plenty of other teams looking to boost their rosters to contend with these two juggernaut teams. Will any other Eastern or Western Conference teams step up to the challenge for the 2017-18 NBA season? Stay tuned.
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