NBA Playoffs 2015: Keys to Crucial Warriors vs. Cavaliers Game 6
The NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers have been a series of momentum shifts and streaks, with each team responding to losses with two-game winning streaks. Now, in a pivotal Game 6, the Cavaliers will be looking to shift the momentum in their favor one more time, while the Warriors will be hoping to close things out.
Let's break down the keys to Game 6.
1. Will Someone Other Than LeBron James Show Up for Cleveland?
The Warriors aren't going to slow down LeBron James. It just isn't going to happen. He's averaging 36.6 points, 12.4 rebounds and 8.8 rebounds in 45.6 minutes per night, for heaven's sake. He's literally Cleveland's offensive game plan, all by his lonesome.
But he needs help.
Tristan Thompson, to his credit, has three double-doubles in a row. The fact that two of them have come in losses suggests just how poorly the rest of the Cleveland supporting cast has been playing.
J.R. Smith is averaging just 10 points per game in this series, shooting an abysmal 30.6 percent from the field. That would be less of an issue if Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love were on the court, but with both of them done for the postseason, Smith is the team's most talented scorer after James, and he's been a dud in this series.
Timofey Mozgov had scored 16 or more points in three of the first four games in this series before David Blatt decided to play him just nine minutes in Game 5, favoring a small lineup. After the 104-91 loss, it's unlikely the coach will revert to that strategy in Game 6.
Matthew Dellavedova gave the team 20 points, five rebounds and four assists in a Game 3 win, but that might have been the night of his career. Expecting him to play second fiddle to James is a recipe for disaster.
And finally, Iman Shumpert has given this team very little, namely on the offensive end. Any positive contribution from him would be welcome.
For the Cavs to win Game 6, they don't necessarily need one of the above players to play great behind James. They just need each of these players to play well, all at once. Based on Golden State's past two victories, Cleveland's chances of winning this series seem like a long shot. But an inspired performance, at home, could at least earn it a Game 7, where anything can happen.
2. Will Steph Curry Offer an MVP Performance?
With the exception of a horrid Game 2, Steph Curry generally has been pretty great in this series. But it wasn't until Game 6 that he was MVP great, scoring 37 points on 56.5 percent shooting from the field (both series highs) while also adding seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.
It was the first time Curry exceeded 30 points in this series, a surprise for the player who had done so eight times in 15 games this postseason coming into the NBA Finals.
Golden State is the better team on paper, plain and simple. It has the more talented supporting cast, better depth and players who perfectly play their assigned roles. Curry isn't relying on obscure veterans to support him, so if he plays like he did in Game 5, it's hard to imagine Golden State losing this game, even on the road.
3. Can Golden State Take the Cleveland Crowd out of the Game?
It's a smaller thing than the above keys, but the Warriors will need to get out to a strong start early and look to take the raucous Cleveland crowd out of the game. If any team understands how much a strong, excited home crowd can ignite a team, it's the Warriors.
If the Warriors can deflate the crowd early, it will make an already difficult task for the Cavs all the more difficult. But if the Warriors struggle out of the gate, they may find a Cleveland team that feeds off the crowd and plays an inspired performance that sets up a Game 7 in Oakland.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
