The Numbers Game: 2016 NBA Finals Stats That Will Blow Your Mind
It's shocking that the Golden State Warriors rebounded from a 3-1 deficit to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals. It's incredible that they're one win from defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers again to defend their NBA title.
It's stunning they were able to win three of the series' first five games while Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson largely struggled to live up to their incredible scoring numbers from the regular season. It's amazing that LeBron James has been capable of shouldering such a large load for the overmatched Cavs, just as he did one year ago.
But these next stats from the 2016 NBA Finals? They're downright mind-blowing.
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LeBron James and Kyrie Irving Go for 82
Prior to Game 5, the world had never seen two teammates explode for 40 points apiece during a single NBA Finals contest. But that all changed when James and Kyrie Irving kept the Cavaliers' title dreams alive by each registering 41-spots against the Warriors on Monday night.
The deeper you dig into their performances, the more stunning they become.
Per ESPN, which also revealed the aforementioned tidbit about the rarity of the dual feat, neither Cleveland superstar had dropped 40 in a game all season:
As Tommy Beer of Basketball Insiders shared, they join Wilt Chamberlain and Elgin Baylor in a rather exclusive group:
Bleacher Report's Tyler Conway helped us realize this performance resonates throughout the playoffs as a whole, not just the Finals:
James had one of the lines of his life, and that's saying something. By throwing up 41 points, 16 rebound, seven assists, three steals and three blocks, he proved he was still capable of completely taking over a game and stuffing a stat sheet—much to the chagrin of critics who'd been pointing out his unwillingness to do exactly that.
Irving was just as masterful, draining one contested bucket after another until he'd recorded his 41 on 17-of-24 shooting from the field. As ESPN Stats & Info revealed, putting a hand in the face of either star didn't seem to matter:
In Game 5, the Warriors finished with an uncharacteristically low 97 points. During those same 48 minutes, Irving and James alone accounted for 97 points with their scoring habits and dime-dropping ways.
Warriors Bench > Cavaliers Bench
Neither the Warriors nor the Cavaliers posted particularly impressive scoring numbers off the pine during the 2015-16 campaign.
Led by Marreese Speights, Andre Iguodala, Festus Ezeli and Shaun Livingston, Golden State averages 34.1 bench points (playoffs included)—the No. 17 mark in the NBA, per HoopsStats.com. Meanwhile, Cleveland, often paced by Mo Williams, Tristan Thompson (when he didn't start) and Matthew Dellavedova, are ahead of only the Detroit Pistons by posting 27.0 bench points per game.
During the NBA Finals, that gap has grown into a yawning chasm:
Through the first four contests, the Dubs' bench players had doubled the output of Cleveland's.
We've seen Leandro Barbosa take over games, as he did in the series opener:
Livingston has been his typically dominant self when lofting up mid-range attempts. Iguodala has scratched and clawed his way into contention for back-to-back Finals MVPs, and not only because of his defensive ability. Even Ian Clark has scored 10 points in just 16 minutes.
The same story hasn't rung true for the Cavaliers, as you can see by looking at the 10 highest-scoring bench players in these Finals:
No one has been able to make shots for Cleveland head coach Tyronn Lue, which is probably why he's leaned on his stars, hoping for herculean efforts.
Stars Shouldering Much Heavier Burden in Cleveland
The Warriors have been able to squeeze contributions out of everyone on the roster, but the Cavs have had no such luck.
"It hurt us," Lue said about fatigue after the Cavaliers' Game 4 loss, per Cleveland.com's Chris Fedor. "I went with my best players in the fourth quarter, down 2-1, and it didn't work."
LeBron James has to do everything. Kyrie Irving can't risk spending too much time on the pine. J.R. Smith has been undeniably crucial. Even Richard Jefferson has had to shoulder significantly more responsibility, given Kevin Love's concussion issues and overall ineffectiveness.
The distribution of minutes is just stunning:
Those pie charts look similar, but not when you take a gander at the names. Curry isn't at the very top, as James and Irving are for the Cavaliers. Thompson isn't even close to earning the largest Bay Area slice.
"In nine days, you can rest all summer," Lue said, per Cleveland.com's Bud Shaw.
And Shaw continued with the following: "An old-school quote, for sure. And totally beside the point. Knowing a raft in Cancun awaits doesn't help when Irving and others are hyperventilating in the fourth quarter."
Last time we checked, it's a lot easier to play quality basketball when you can actually breathe.
Klay Thompson's 1st-Quarter Struggles
During the regular season, Thompson didn't take long to heat up. According to NBA.com's statistical databases, he scored more points per game in the first quarter than any other period. Even when looking at per-36-minute numbers, he was never better than in that opening action.
Through the first three rounds of the playoffs, not much had changed. But in the Finals, a different narrative has emerged:
The fourth-quarter numbers are understandable. Thompson didn't need to play all that much while the Warriors and Cavaliers were taking turns blowing each other out at the beginning of the series. But his woeful performances in the opening stanzas defy logic.
He's made only five of his 20 shots from the field—including just three of his 12 long-range attempts. He's taken only a pair of free throws and missed them both. Nothing has seemed to click, and his eight-point first quarter in Game 5 was basically a scoring outburst.
Most bizarre of all? Thompson went scoreless during all first quarters of the Finals until knocking down a triple halfway through Game 4's opening period.
Golden State's Superior Assist Percentage
When the Warriors are at their best, they're moving the ball around and seeking out the extra pass that results in the most efficient attempt. They're willing to veer away from good shots in favor of great ones, regardless of who's on the receiving end of the final feed.
Plays like this are just unfair:
The Cavaliers are similarly dominant when they trust each other, but that doesn't happen with nearly as much frequency.
Far too often, they devolve into stagnation, counting on the superstars to create their own offense while four players stand in the corners and wings to create extra space. Sometimes it works, as was the case Monday night. But it's not the most sustainable strategy, which still spells trouble for Cleveland.
James has the Finals' top individual assist percentage, dishing out dimes on a staggering 40.8 percent of the shots his teammates make while he's on the floor. But Irving (22.7), Dellavedova (19.5) and James Jones (11.4) are the only others in double digits, and Jones has barely played.
Meanwhile, the Warriors have eight such players: Curry (25.4), Draymond Green (23.1), Livingston (22), Anderson Varejao (21.7), Iguodala (20.6), McAdoo (12.1), Clark (12) and Marreese Speights (11.5). Thompson (9.6) and Leandro Barbosa (9.4) are also ahead of the Cavs' No. 4 individual assist percentage player (Mo Williams at 9.2).
Even when you discount the non-rotation members, the overall numbers are staggering. In fact, this series has featured the third-largest disparity in the competitors' assist percentages since 1984, when the stat was first tracked:
During the regular season, the Warriors posted the league's best assist percentage, recording dimes on 68 percent of their made shots. Cleveland was merely average, checking in at No. 16 with a 58.7 assist percentage.
That growing disparity in the Finals may be the greatest factor behind Golden State's success in its repeat bid.
Adam Fromal covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @fromal09.
Unless otherwise indicated, all stats are from Basketball-Reference.com, Adam's own databases or NBAMath.com.
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