Report: Andre Iguodala's Knee Is Pain-Free, Aiming to Return During Finals

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The Golden State Warriors already have a 2-0 lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

Now it appears they'll be at full strength before too long.

Chris Haynes of ESPN reported Iguodala's knee is pain free and he is expected to play at some point in the NBA Finals. The missing component of the Hamptons Five lineup has been out since suffering a bone bruise in Game 3 of the conference finals against the Houston Rockets.

"I'm optimistic Andre will play at some point in the series," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. "He has gotten better gradually, but there's no way of knowing for sure at this point."

Iguodala said he is hoping to be available for Game 3's matchup with the Cavs on Wednesday. The Warriors will likely deploy him as the primary defender of LeBron James, who is averaging 40.0 points, 10.5 assists and 8.5 rebounds through the first two games.

Iguodala won the 2015 Finals MVP thanks in large part to his defense on James, which allowed the Warriors to avoid hard doubles that would have left shooters open. James was still brilliant, as he will be for the remainder of this series. Iguodala is just a strong enough defender that he doesn't need as much help and saves Kevin Durant from wearing himself out.

Of course, this all assumes Iguodala is at 100 percent. He's been a lesser version of himself all year. If James notices any slow steps or weaknesses, he'll attack until Iguodala is played off the floor or the Warriors have to switch.

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All signs point to the Hamptons Five reuniting at some point in Cleveland either way.