The Cleveland Cavaliers are tired now. The relentless zeal that pushed them to two early victories in the NBA finals has drained away. The series has grown long and the injuries to Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love have proven all but fatal to the title dreams that burned just a week ago. LeBron James and a whole lot of enthusiasm are no match for the speed and depth of Golden State.
Even with the series in Cleveland for Game 6 on Tuesday night, it feels like a last gasp for the Cavs. The way the Warriors raced past them in those final few minutes in Game 5 makes the result of this series seem a certainty.
And yet because this is the finals and Cleveland have James, there remains that shred of doubt. If James is going to have that career-defining moment of pure greatness he never had to have in his title with the Miami Heat, tonight would be the time to do it.
“One thing I’ve learned playing with LeBron for three years, you never count the man out,” his former team-mate Shane Battier said on a Monday conference call for the American Century Championship golf tournament. “If he scores 50 points, the Cavs will win. If he doesn’t I have the Golden State Warriors ending the series at six.”
In a sense, this is what everything has come down to for the Cavaliers. After the brief spurts of brilliance from his far-less heralded team-mates like Matthew Dellavedova and JR Smith, this series comes down to him. Play two games for the ages and maybe Cleveland has a chance. It’s hard to imagine James playing much better than he did in Game 5 when he scored 40 points with 14 rebounds and 11 assists. But this is the predicament in which Cleveland finds themselves. With Irving and Love the Cavs might already be champions, holding a parade today instead of anticipating a wake. Without them, in a long series, against one of the league’s deepest teams, Cleveland just doesn’t have enough.
On Sunday, Cleveland shot just 39.5%. It was the third time this series the Warriors have held the Cavs below 40%. This will not win a title. Not against a team that scores as well as Golden State.
Not that the Warriors coach Steve Kerr is taking anything for granted. “There is a lot of emotion. You’re right there on the cusp of something, but you still have to get the job done, and in this case we’ll be on the road against a great team,” Kerr said. “It’s going to be hard. It’s just the way it is.”
In the end, everything comes down to James. “We don’t want them celebrating at all, no matter if it’s on our home floor or their home floor,” he said.
But even the greatest player in the world might not have enough to save Cleveland now.
