Photo by Warriors
In the final meeting between these two teams, the King lost his footing. LeBron James was quoted saying he is the "best player in the world" last season during the NBA Finals. Last night he found himself befuddled after a horrific loss to a team that has dethroned him twice. LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers suffered their worst loss of the season, being defeated 132-98 by the Warriors.
In the same arena where Golden State won their NBA Championship, they still dominated. By record they may be the best team in the East, but the Cavs are not the best team in the East to face the Warriors. Last night was an embarrassment to the organization and James himself.
The team that was without their star point guard during the finals last year claimed that with injuries they were unable to compete effectively. Last night Cleveland had a full squad. Now what's the excuse? Stephen Curry, who will more than likely claim MVP honors again this year, scored 35 points in three quarters in statement game that was all to clear.
"They came in and gave us a good ol' fashion ass-kicking," James said. "They did what they wanted."
After a wicked loss to the Detroit Pistons the night before, Golden State built a 30-point lead in the first half, and pushed it further to a 43-point lead after halftime. The frustration mounted with shoves and pushes that led to JR Smith being ejected for a flagrant foul 2. James was held to 16 points while Kyrie Irving had eight points on 3-of-11 shooting. And Kevin Love added three points in 21 minutes.
The once dominant Cleveland team now stands as just a regular team in the league when it comes to the surging Warriors. They may hold the best record in the East but I believe that will change soon. James and his teammates lost the eye of the tiger they once had. The "King" is a name James gave himself entering the league as a high school kid.
Now looking ahead at what appears to be the best player in the NBA. Curry now leads the league in jersey sales and isn't far behind Kobe Bryant (who is in his last season) in voting for the NBA-All Star Game. The one team that the Warriors haven't faced since being defeated twice in the regular season is the San Antonio Spurs, who have the second best record in the NBA behind the Warriors.
"Against the top teams you want to play well and we haven't done that. We're 0-3 against the top teams in the West," said James. "Tonight was an example of how far we have to go to win a championship."
Curry's circus show of dropping 3s all over the court continued while amazing the crowd. As the debate increases on NBA's best point guards, Curry has certainly made a name for himself in these last two seasons. His teammates praise his work ethic and say he motivates them to step their game up.
The Warriors have one goal in their minds and that's to win another NBA championship. They don't care about records or catching the Chicago Bulls 72-10 record. Off to the best start in franchise history, the Warriors still feel like they have yet to play their best basketball.
"After what happened in Detroit, this was a great opportunity for us to bounce back and prove a message to ourselves that if we play the way we're supposed to and get stops and take care of the ball and get open looks, we're tough to beat," Curry said.