OAKLAND, Calif. _ After becoming the first team to blow a 3-1 NBA Finals lead a year ago, the Warriors offered free agent Kevin Durant a two-year deal worth $54.27 million to be the difference-maker and possibly the final piece to build a dynasty. What a bargain.
Durant was every bit of that in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Monday night at Oracle Arena, scoring 11 of his 39 points in the fourth quarter of a 129-120 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers that clinched the Warriors' second title in three seasons. It was the fifth straight 30-point performance for Durant in as many Finals games and earned him the MVP award.
The Warriors went 16-1 this postseason, beating the 2000-01 Lakers' 15-1.
This was the second Finals appearance for Durant, who lost in 2012 with Oklahoma City against LeBron James and the Miami Heat. So there was a measure of redemption as much for him as the Warriors, who lost to the Cavaliers last year after beating them in 2015.
Durant shot 14-for-20 and added seven rebounds and five assists. Stephen Curry added 34 points and 10 assists for the Warriors, who got 20 off the bench from Andre Iguodala, 11 from Klay Thompson and 10 points and 12 rebounds from Draymond Green. A 38-point second quarter gave the Warriors a 71-point first half.
James was valiant in defeat for the Cavs with 41 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists. Kyrie Irving scored 26 points, J.R. Smith added 25 and Tristan Thompson had 15.
Coming off a Game 4 loss in which the Warriors gave up 49 first-quarter points, 86 first-half points and 24 made 3-pointers by the Cavaliers, all NBA Finals records, coach Steve Kerr was looking for a much-improved defensive effort from the outset of Game 5.
"For us as a team, we have to be more on edge," Kerr said. "I hope we're a little more nervous. We didn't seem that nervous in Game 4. Nervous is good. 'Appropriate fear' is the Gregg Popovich line. You need that. When we come out at the beginning of Game 4 and lose shooters and turn the ball over carelessly, we're obviously not ready. I would hope we're more ready, more prepared tonight."
The Warriors came out with the requisite energy early but then suffered a relapse to their careless ballhandling ways of Game 4. They committed four turnovers in five possessions that helped fuel a 16-3 Cleveland run, including 10 points by James, as the Cavaliers took a 20-12 lead. The Warriors made only two of their first 11 three-pointers as another 9-0 Cavs surge pushed their lead to 41-33 early in the second period.
But that's where the Warriors' high-powered offense finally clicked into gear. They shook off early foul trouble to play lockdown defense that fed an extended 28-4 run to build a 61-45 lead and send the Oracle Arena crowd into spasms of joy. The Warriors hit five of six 3-point attempts during that stretch, and Durant had 11 points, including consecutive threes, in that span.
The Warriors' lead actually reached 17 points later, but the saving grace for the Cavs was an 8-2 surge at the end of the half, spurred by two 3-pointers by Smith, that cut their deficit to 71-60 and kept the game within reach.
In the third quarter, the Cavaliers really showed their resilience. A 15-6 run led by six points from Irving got them within five, and after the Warriors pushed it back to 10, the Cavs scored six straight points, with Thompson's dunk cutting their deficit to 90-86.
Durant stopped that surge with a three-pointer, but when James scored the first basket of the fourth quarter, the Warriors found themselves clinging to a precarious 98-95 lead.
Durant responded with a tough turnaround jumper and Iguodala backed him up with another 3-pointer to go up 103-95. Without a doubt, Durant was the stopper every time the Cavs threatened and the ultimate difference.
