NBA Finals Schedule 2016: Complete TV Coverage for Championship Series

No matter who wins the Western Conference, LeBron James will face a familiar foe in the 2016 NBA Finals.

The Cleveland Cavaliers secured their second straight Finals appearance with a 113-87 win Friday night, closing out the Toronto Raptors in six games. Although the Eastern Conference champions lost their perfect postseason record, they outscored the Raptors by a combined 114 points during their four victories.

Cleveland can now turn its attention to Saturday night's showdown between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Golden State Warriors. If the Thunder seal the deal with a Game 6 win, they'll get another crack at James four years after falling to his Miami Heat in the 2012 Finals. If the Warriors wiggle out two wins, the Cavaliers can amend last year's championship loss with a healthier cast.

While the venues and start times remain undetermined, the NBA Finals will commence Thursday night. Here's a look at the dates for the championship series, which will air exclusively on ABC:

Game	Date	TV
1	Thursday, June 2	ABC
2	Sunday, June 5	ABC
3	Wednesday, June 8	ABC
4	Friday, June 10	ABC
5*	Monday, June 13	ABC
6*	Thursday, June 16	ABC
7*	Sunday, June 19	ABC

Will Warriors Pull Off Ultimate Comeback?

The Warriors are done. Those 73 wins mean nothing now—and some worthless sentiment about how the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls would have never lost a basketball game.

Oh wait, the best regular-season team of all time is still alive after beating the Thunder in Game 5. If they seize Game 6 on the road, an epic meltdown would turn into an even slate.

After getting demolished in back-to-back games, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr killed his small-ball lineup—which had vaulted the team to historic heights since he employed it heavily in last year's Finals—as it was no match for the Thunder's configuration of Russell Westbrook, Dion Waiters, Andre Roberson, Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka.

When facing a 2-1 deficit against Cleveland last year, Golden State benched center Andrew Bogut. This time, it adjusted by playing him more. Entrusted with a larger role, the 31-year-old recorded a postseason-high 15 points and 14 rebounds over 30 minutes.

Per USA Today's Sam Amick, Kerr praised Bogut for responding to extra responsibility after playing 14 minutes per game through the first four bouts:

"

I thought Boges was phenomenal. He rebounded, he scored, he was aggressive. We went into him on the post to try to get him as a passer with our cutters around him, and he was tremendous – 14 boards. Obviously, rebounding has been an issue. It's an issue for everybody against Oklahoma City. So when he can play that way and rebound the ball like that, it just gives us a much better chance to win the game.

I believe in Boges. I think he can play that way in Game 6. I think he really found his stride tonight, and I think that momentum will carry over.

"

In Game 4, Oklahoma City grabbed 56 boards, compared to Golden State's 40. With Bogut crashing the glass, both sides corralled 45 rebounds Thursday night. As ESPN Stats & Info noted, the Warriors also yielded fewer points down low:

The Warriors looked more like their usual selves during their 120-111 win, but their shooters still struggled. Although Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson scored 31 and 27 points, respectively, they went a combined 5-of-17 from three-point range.

Both star guards are shooting below their means in the series:

Player	WCF FG %	2015-16 FG %	WCF 3P %	2015-16 3P%
Stephen Curry	.426	.504	.373	.454
Klay Thompson	.414	.470	.295	.425

Golden State can't complete its comeback with the Splash Brothers shooting worse than Westbrook from behind the arc. Earning 34 free-throw attempts will prove to be more difficult on the road, and Marreese Speights is unlikely to deliver another 14 points in nine minutes.

Just as three losses didn't discredit their full body of work, one victory doesn't reset the Warriors' shortcomings in the series. Thunder head coach Billy Donovan will adjust to Kerr's adjustment, perhaps by returning to shunned big man Enes Kanter.

Neither opponent is a particularly enticing option for the Cavaliers, but they should secretly root for the Thunder. Having finished the regular season with two more victories, the Cavs would gain home-court advantage against OKC. That beats opening the Finals at Oracle Arena, where the Warriors are 47-3. 

Cleveland also beat the Thunder in both regular-season matchups while losing twice to the Warriors. Then again, facing two superstars in their primes on a squad peaking at the perfect time shouldn't excite James and Co., either.