Congrats! Cleveland, James, Kyrie, Dahntay!

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Career defining night for LBJ

[dukelifer]

History in many ways- heck of a game

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Kyrie hits the big shot, but the story will always be about Lebron. Well-deserved. Coming back from 3-1 against that team is more impressive than anything he did in Miami.

Heat fans--at least the ones in my social media circles--surprisingly not all that salty.

The King stay the King.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

I can't recall a more emotional team in professional sports. That was pretty raw.

[duke4ever19]

So happy for two of my fellow Duke family members tonight. It's an honor cheering for my Duke alums in all walks of life.

Kyrie with that fade away dagger 3 in Curry's face made my night.

[CDu]

Kyrie hits the big shot, but the story will always be about Lebron. Well-deserved. Coming back from 3-1 against that team is more impressive than anything he did in Miami.

Heat fans--at least the ones in my social media circles--surprisingly not all that salty.

The King stay the King.

Nor should Heat fans be salty. They were the ones who had fortune fall in their lap when James deserted Cleveland for greener pastures. Only fair that Cleveland get him back once Miami's star faded.

[FerryFor50]

Gotta love the Warriors fans booing Adam Silver.

Great series. Great to see James shake off some bad performances in the first 3 games to go into Finals assassin mode.

Emotion by James is legit; that's his hometown and that's a MAJOR monkey off his back - quiets the critics and brings the trophy to a city starving for one.

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Nor should Heat fans be salty. They were the ones who had fortune fall in their lap when James deserted Cleveland for greener pastures. Only fair that Cleveland get him back once Miami's star faded.

Well, he was extremely unprofessional on his way out, but I think overall, we'll take it.

[FerryFor50]

Also, Kevin Love played a pretty big role tonight. 14 boards and a GREAT defensive play on Curry near the end of the game. Stuck with Curry the whole time.

[CDu]

Well, he was extremely unprofessional on his way out, but I think overall, we'll take it.

He was a lot less unprofessional on the way out than he was on the way in.

[Troublemaker]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PExO7fxi8CU

[Newton_14]

I am so happy for Kyrie and Lebron I don't know what to do! Kyrie plays his tail off the entire series, hits the dagger 3 for the winning basket.. Lebron brings the first NBA Title to a title drought stricken city of Cleveland, finishes with a Triple Double in one of the greatest Game 7's in NBA History, and leaves it all on the floor. Exhausted at the end mentally and physically. Comes back from 3-1, which had never been done in the finals, against one of the greatest NBA teams of all time, and wins Game 7 on their floor? That's just storybook stuff right there.

I know some don't believe the colleges the players came from matter, but it matters to me. I was pulling hard for our former Blue Devils Kyrie and Dahntay, as well as pulling extremely hard against HeWhoShallNotBeNamed, who played like crap for 7 games, and showed us once again that back in 2010, Duke got the best player and Unc-Cheat got the lesser player. So for me personally, a great night for this Blue Devil fan.

Congrats Kyrie, Dahntay, Lebron and the City of Cleveland. Well deserved!

You are forever NBA Champions in 2016.

P.S. > Kyrie is so well spoken. His interview just now was great. Love that kid and very proud he is a Blue Devil.

[indy1duke]

As a long-suffering Cleveland born sports fan this was sweet. As a Duke fan I cannot help think what might have been in 2011 with a healthy Kyrie. What a shot!

[dukelifer]

I am so happy for Kyrie and Lebron I don't know what to do! Kyrie plays his tail off the entire series, hits the dagger 3 for the winning basket.. Lebron brings the first NBA Title to a title drought stricken city of Cleveland, finishes with a Triple Double in one of the greatest Game 7's in NBA History, and leaves it all on the floor. Exhausted at the end mentally and physically. Comes back from 3-1, which had never been done in the finals, against one of the greatest NBA teams of all time, and wins Game 7 on their floor? That's just storybook stuff right there.

I know some don't believe the colleges the players came from matter, but it matters to me. I was pulling hard for our former Blue Devils Kyrie and Dahntay, as well as pulling extremely hard against HeWhoShallNotBeNamed, who played like crap for 7 games, and showed us once again that back in 2010, Duke got the best player and Unc-Cheat got the lesser player. So for me personally, a great night for this Blue Devil fan.

Congrats Kyrie, Dahntay, Lebron and the City of Cleveland. Well deserved!

You are forever NBA Champions in 2016.

P.S. > Kyrie is so well spoken. His interview just now was great. Love that kid and very proud he is a Blue Devil.

Just goes to show- Bron can't win without a Duke guy on his team

[Newton_14]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PExO7fxi8CU

Props for posting this! Definitely going into my video library! Tried to give you tridents but I have to spread the love!

My office mate at work was born and raised in Ohio near Cleveland, and is a diehard Cleveland Fan in every major sport. He lives and breathes it, which is great. He is one of the true long-suffering fans, and just asked me during texting if crying was allowed, and I said heck yeah dude. It was crying time for sure for fans like him. Going to be a fun day at work tomorrow with him.

[moonpie23]

man, it's got to make you think about all the "greatest team ever" crap shoved in lebron's face along with the "curry is the best player in the nba" crap just pissed him off...

that was a nice ribeye to watch....

[FerryFor50]

https://twitter.com/BruhReport/status/743651512816009217

[Troublemaker]

http://www.viralhoops.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Charles-Barkley-TNT.png


(Context (http://espn.go.com/nba/playoffs/2016/story/_/id/16062449/charles-barkley-remains-bullish-cavs), in case anyone's wondering.)

[FerryFor50]

This is pretty good:

http://www.theonion.com/article/cavs-teammates-sheepishly-tell-kevin-love-theyre-n-53116

[heyman25]

So happy for two of my fellow Duke family members tonight. It's an honor cheering for my Duke alums in all walks of life.

Kyrie with that fade away dagger 3 in Curry's face made my night.
I agree it sealed the deal for Uncle Drew and the Kyrie Irving megastar.
Happy for Le Bron.
Happy for Cleveland and Northeast Ohio. I have a deceased relative that was a Cleveland native but made his fame and fortune in Las Vegas and La Costa. Allard Roen who went to Duke but did not graduate. He was on TV when the Tournament of Champions check was given to the winner. Cleveland has a very hipster downtown. Standard Oil and the Rockefeller's fortune took place in that downtown. Very great architecture from the past.

[heyman25]

For rock music fans Rock N Roll Hall of Fame is worth an afternoon.

[El_Diablo]

Can a mod add "Dahntay" to the thread title?

[Newton_14]

Can a mod add "Dahntay" to the thread title?

DONE!

[duke4ever19]

man, it's got to make you think about all the "greatest team ever" crap shoved in lebron's face along with the "curry is the best player in the nba" crap just pissed him off...

that was a nice ribeye to watch...

There was a moment late in game 6 - around the time of the LeBron rejection of Curry and subsequent trash talk - when the Cleveland crowd started chanting "MVP" as he was at the foul line. LeBron acknowledged the cheer by kinda shrugging and nodding his head as if to say, "Sounds about right."

Just the image of LeBron swatting away Curry's shot like he was playing in the backyard with one of his sons, combined by the visual size and strength difference on display between the two players on that play felt like a key moment when LeBron decided Curry and Co. weren't going to razzle dazzle their way to the title again.

[heyman25]

I have hung out at 4th and Prospect. Stayed at the Renaissance Hotel near Quicken Loans. Must be super fun for Cleveland fans

[NashvilleDevil]

Props for posting this! Definitely going into my video library! Tried to give you tridents but I have to spread the love!

My office mate at work was born and raised in Ohio near Cleveland, and is a diehard Cleveland Fan in every major sport. He lives and breathes it, which is great. He is one of the true long-suffering fans, and just asked me during texting if crying was allowed, and I said heck yeah dude. It was crying time for sure for fans like him. Going to be a fun day at work tomorrow with him.

HAHAHAHAHA!!! He's not going to be at work.

[FerryFor50]

There was a moment later in game 6 - around the time of the LeBron rejection of Curry and subsequent trash talk - when the Cleveland crowd started chanting "MVP" as he was at the foul line. LeBron acknowledged the cheer by kinda shrugging and nodding his head as if to say, "Sounds about right."

Just the image of LeBron swatting away Curry's shot like he was playing in the backyard with one of his sons, combined by the visual size and strength difference on display between the two players on that play felt like a key moment when LeBron decided Curry and Co. weren't going to razzle dazzle their way to the title again.

In this game, James also swatted a Curry layup pretty emphatically and stared Curry down and probably said a few things.

What was telling was that it wasn't Curry that stood up for himself, but Draymond who played enforcer.

Curry didn't show a ton of mental toughness this series.

[heyman25]

Dahntay is super fortunate to play on a World Championship Team . He is nearing the end of his NBA career and had I think a 15 day clause before the Playoffs.

[Newton_14]

In this game, James also swatted a Curry layup pretty emphatically and stared Curry down and probably said a few things.

What was telling was that it wasn't Curry that stood up for himself, but Draymond who played enforcer.

Curry didn't show a ton of mental toughness this series.

Agree. In fairness to Curry (and Green for that matter), both waited thru the celebrations and then congratulated Kyrie, Lebron and others. I always feel that is a Classy Move for a player to do that despite the killer pain and hurt they are feeling at the time. I don't begrudge those that don't however (like Klay Thompson) because that pain is intense and if a player wants/needs to just go straight to the lockerroom to be alone, that's understandable to me in the professional leagues.

Watching Curry's post-game interview right now and he is being very well spoken, and taking all questions like a good sportsmanship player, and is being very classy in my opinion.

[duke4ever19]

Yeah, I know that the crying Jordan meme is tired but . . .

6454

[jipops]

I had a blast watching that series. I know most of the games weren't close and the officiating was frustrating, but seeing the back and forth and the number of spectacular plays was a joy to watch.

Coaches are very easily criticized for their mistakes but rarely get credit for the simple smart moves. I think Lue made an excellent move by resting Irving right in the middle of the crucial 4th. It was Irving that had legs that were fresh enough to hit that big shot and play some pretty decent defense at the end.

I wonder how ticked W's fans are at Draymond. This series should have been over in game 5. But instead he got himself suspended. Besides LeBron and Kyrie's spectacular play in the latter games, Draymond's suspension and Iggy's bad back were the turning points. I suppose Bogut's injury didn't help either but his impact isn't as large.

[FerryFor50]

I wonder how ticked W's fans are at Draymond. This series should have been over in game 5. But instead he got himself suspended. Besides LeBron and Kyrie's spectacular play in the latter games, Draymond's suspension and Iggy's bad back were the turning points. I suppose Bogut's injury didn't help either but his impact isn't as large.

Mad at Green?

No, they (wrongly) blame Adam Silver.

[duke4ever19]

Mad at Green?

No, they (wrongly) blame Adam Silver.

Perhaps Warriors fans should blame Draymond Green's mom and dad for not properly teaching young Draymond to keep his hands and feet to himself?

[jipops]

I don't get the Curry bashing at all. He does something stupid and throw a mouthpiece out of frustration and now he's the villian. Hmmm, did he play for Duke?

Curry was great for most of the series. You have to give Tristan Thompson a ton of credit for coming out on him and disrupting his looks. I don't think Curry had many 6'10" guys staying in front of him this season. It really threw him off at times.

Watching the post game Curry handled it like a man. My opinion of Steph is no different than what it was before this series.

[BlueDevilBrowns]

So many emotions right now.

My Grandfather passed away in 1995 before The Move and my Dad passed in 2014 after a lengthy battle with cancer.

After the final buzzer, I called my Mom and we both just cried.

No words can really describe what this means.

I love Cleveland Sports and I love my Dad and I love my Grandpa.

So this was for them tonight.

GO CAVS, GO CLEVELAND, AND GO DUKE!!!!!

[moonpie23]

Kyrie ridiculously well spoken.....


glad he is a dukie,,,,

[royalblue]

Krunch time Kyrie and King James bring a title to Cleveland
I do wonder who "The Tongue Wagger" was pulling for tonight.

[Billy Dat]

Kyrie changed the trajectory of his career. He went from being one of the best electric offensive talents and a poor defender to beIng a guy who can be a legit #2 man on a title team with the chopa to be #1 offensive player moving forward. He is now the Duke alum to play the most important role on a title team, more Duke guys with rings, I echo all Newton's comments.

Lebron moves up the Pantheon, a title for Cleveland, remarkable.

Title for K Love changes his narrative. He played well even with that concussion. Tristan earns his contract. He is still so young.

JR Smith is an NBA champ.

Tyron Lue ultimately did a very good job.

Draymond was brilliant, but his suspension was the real MVP. There are a lot of what ifs in the GSW locker room.

[subzero02]

The Cavs played some solid defense down the stretch. LeBron's block on Iggy helped the Cavs hold curry and the Warriors scoreless over the game's final 4 minutes 39 seconds. BTW. Kevin Love was +19 in 30 minutes of play. He and Thompson had some nice defensive stretches guarding Curry on the perimeter. Steve Adams should take notes.

[Edouble]

Kyrie changed the trajectory of his career. He went from being one of the best electric offensive talents and a poor defender to beIng a guy who can be a legit #2 man on a title team with the chopa to be #1 offensive player moving forward. He is now the Duke alum to play the most important role on a title team, more Duke guys with rings, I echo all Newton's comments.

Lebron moves up the Pantheon, a title for Cleveland, remarkable.

Title for K Love changes his narrative. He played well even with that concussion. Tristan earns his contract. He is still so young.

JR Smith is an NBA champ.

Tyron Lue ultimately did a very good job.

Draymond was brilliant, but his suspension was the real MVP. There are a lot of what ifs in the GSW locker room.

Kyrie and King were the stars of this game for sure, but Love led the team with +19.

[Billy Dat]

LeBron's block on Iggy helped the Cavs hold curry and the Warriors scoreless over the game's final 4 minutes 39 seconds.

One of the greatest plays in NBA Finals history which means it's one of the great plays in NBA history, right?

[mr. synellinden]

One of the greatest plays in NBA Finals history which means it's one of the great plays in NBA history, right?

I think it's the best basketball play I've ever seen when you factor in the moment and the importance of the play in terms of the outcome of the game. Watch that play in slow motion and see how far away he is when the play starts. The sped and athleticism involved is astonishing.

I also think it's worth emphasizing that the Cavs held the 73 win Warriors and one of the greatest offensive teams in history without a point for the last 4:39. In game 7. On the road.

Curry was awful down the stretch. Threw a stupid behind the back pass out of bounds. Missed 3 pointers badly, missed a layup. Got beat for the game winning 3. LeBron showed who the best player in the world is. The big problem with Draymond's altercation with James was not that he got suspended, but rather that he woke up the beast. Has there ever been a better three game stretch than what James just did?

[NashvilleDevil]

I think it's the best basketball play I've ever seen when you factor in the moment and the importance of the play in terms of the outcome of the game. Watch that play in slow motion and see how far away he is when the play starts. The sped and athleticism involved is astonishing.

I also think it's worth emphasizing that the Cavs held the 73 win Warriors and one of the greatest offensive teams in history without a point for the last 4:39. In game 7. On the road.

Curry was awful down the stretch. Threw a stupid behind the back pass out of bounds. Missed 3 pointers badly, missed a layup. Got beat for the game winning 3. LeBron showed who the best player in the world is. The big problem with Draymond's altercation with James was not that he got suspended, but rather that he woke up the beast. Has there ever been a better three game stretch than what James just did?

Jordan's entire 1993 Finals performance.

[BlueDevilBrowns]

Jordan's entire 1993 Finals performance.

Lebron James finished the Finals with the most points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks of any player on BOTH teams.

He is the first player to ever do that in ANY series in NBA history.

Perhaps the greatest playoff performance in history.

[heyman25]

I think it's the best basketball play I've ever seen when you factor in the moment and the importance of the play in terms of the outcome of the game. Watch that play in slow motion and see how far away he is when the play starts. The sped and athleticism involved is astonishing.

I also think it's worth emphasizing that the Cavs held the 73 win Warriors and one of the greatest offensive teams in history without a point for the last 4:39. In game 7. On the road.

Curry was awful down the stretch. Threw a stupid behind the back pass out of bounds. Missed 3 pointers badly, missed a layup. Got beat for the game winning 3. LeBron showed who the best player in the world is. The big problem with Draymond's altercation with James was not that he got suspended, but rather that he woke up the beast. Has there ever been a better three game stretch than what James just did?
ESPN clocked LeBron at 19 mph to perfectly time the Iguadola Block. A fraction later it would be goaltending.Great game 7,but very happy the Cavaliers are the victors.Golden State had a historic season, but now its hollow being second place.

[gam7]

.

I know some don't believe the colleges the players came from matter, but it matters to me. I was pulling hard for our former Blue Devils Kyrie and Dahntay, as well as pulling extremely hard against HeWhoShallNotBeNamed, who played like crap for 7 games.

While it is nice to see two of our own win titles, Dahntay has made it very difficult for me to root for him. I will never forget his throw-down on Nick van der Laan's head (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIlBrrASUyo) while at Duke, but he has proven himself to be a dirty player in the League, plain and simple, whether it is tripping or undercutting Kobe (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnmmxUjrURU), or giving Biyombo a bit of a how's-your-father (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQ4qbjoZrpE), or running along the bench to distract a shooter (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z92azc8H8uY) (though the fact that the shooter was HeWhoShallNotBeNamed is a mitigating factor). The last one in my mind is totally bush league - the basketball equivalent of ARod slapping a ball out of a glove (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lxPNcrvR46Q) or yelling at a Blue Jays third basemen to try to distract him from catching a pop fly (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9NSSCzrnRw).

Also, HeWhoShallNotBeNamed didn't play like crap in 3 of the 7 games (Games 1, 3 and 4). Of course, he was absolutely awful in the last three games of the series.

[Bay Area Duke Fan]

I have a deceased relative that was a Cleveland native but made his fame and fortune in Las Vegas and La Costa. Allard Roen who went to Duke but did not graduate. He was on TV when the Tournament of Champions check was given to the winner.

Wasn't Roen one of the mob-connected casino guys that Howard Hughes pushed out of Las Vegas in the late '60s?

[Skitzle]

75% of Duke NBA Champions won with LeBron James.

[luburch]

Kyrie's 3 to take the lead was absolutely filthy.

The chase-down block by LeBron will go down as one of the biggest plays in NBA Finals history.

[OldPhiKap]

So -- is LeBron the next to appear with Uncle Drew?

[Wander]

Among all the correct things you guys have said about Lebron and Kyrie, shout out to Festus Ezeli. He was totally eaten alive when he was in the game. Missed several close range shots in the first few minutes that could have forced the Cavs to play from behind the whole first half, and then instantly gave up two 3-pointers to Lebron when he was inexplicably put in the game in the 4th quarter to give up the late Warriors lead. Awful.

[Neals384]

Warriors fan here. Congrats to the Cavs! They earned it. LBJ was a man among boys. Neat to see Kyrie make the game winning shot. Kevin woke up. Poor shot selection from Curry and Thompson. Poor coaching: center by committee didn't work. Best of all: Watching HWSnBN trying to block out on Thompson.

Hey, maybe I'm talking myself into being a Cavs fan.

[fraggler]

Wow, I was hoping for a Cleveland win, but I really didn't expect one. They were just tougher down the stretch. I look forward to round three next season (Lebron better not leave Cleveland again now that he fulfilled his promise)!

[BigZ]

Coach K deserves credit too. LeBron didn't play defense before K took over the Olympic team.

[Ichabod Drain]

Rumor has it Harrison Barnes called Jeff Goodman early this morning to see if he thought he could still get a decent contract next season.

[jipops]

LVP for Barnes. Ouch.

http://www.sfgate.com/warriors/article/Barnes-likely-LVP-faces-uncertain-future-with-8312451.php

[flyingdutchdevil]

LVP for Barnes. Ouch.

http://www.sfgate.com/warriors/article/Barnes-likely-LVP-faces-uncertain-future-with-8312451.php

The worst part about it is that it's from a San Francisco publication. Double ouch.

[flyingdutchdevil]

Coach K deserves credit too. LeBron didn't play defense before K took over the Olympic team.

This is just not true.

Also, your first statement makes me laugh. Coach K is a legend, but let's not get ahead of ourselves and comment that he has shaped every Olympian who has played under him. I assume you think Coach K gets credit last year too for Curry and Klay?

[BigZ]

This is just not true.

Also, your first statement makes me laugh. Coach K is a legend, but let's not get ahead of ourselves and comment that he has shaped every Olympian who has played under him. I assume you think Coach K gets credit last year too for Curry and Klay?

LeBron played little to no D his first few years in the league.

[CajunDevil]

Wow! Just wow!

1. LeBron with the best basketball play in the history of the sport (The Block)
2. Kyrie's dagger 3 (The Shot)
3. Coming back from 3-1 deficit against the historically great, defending champs to win Game 7 on their home court, especially when no other team in Finals history had ever done it (The Comeback)
4. LeBron being the first player in any playoff series to lead both teams in points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals
5. The Cavs ending Cleveland's championship drought

The consequences of this historic series:
LeBron doubters are silenced once and for all.
Kyrie is a STAR - as good or better than any point guard in the league. Period

[rsvman]

That was a thing of beauty! As a Thunder fan, I think this was the ultimate payback. Golden State comes back from down 3-1 to win the last series, then get to taste the other side of that in this one.

Kyrie makes the game-winning 3 over the outstretched mouthguard of Curry......sweeet. How much poetic justice was that?


Loved it, loved it, loved it.

[Troublemaker]

A few quick thoughts the morning after:

1. Pretty remarkable comeback by the Cavs, including an excellent job of improving as a team as the series progressed. After Game 4, you could've bet on Cleveland to win the series at 13 to 1 odds.

2. The Cavs were more merciless than GSW in seeking out mismatches, especially in Game 7. Any time a GSW center was on the floor, the Cavs would put him in PNR with either Kyrie or Lebron; Ezeli's 4Q adventures were indeed predictable. And when GSW went small, the Cavs would put Curry in PNR, re-screening until the switch occurred. GSW in contrast was more dedicated to running their off-ball screening and cutting, but that didn't produce enough points in this case. It was sort of an aristocratic approach ("we run real offense no matter what"), but it would've been interesting to see if GSW would've scored more points had they been more bourgeois (use PNR to more often hunt Love [despite the 1 play where he held up well], who played 30 minutes) or more prole (iso Curry on Kyrie).

3. The elongated Finals schedule probably helped the Cavs, who are less deep. Last year's Finals had 3 games played on one day's rest compared to just 1 game this year, which happened to be Game 4, the only game in which the Cavs collapsed in the 4th quarter. That could be coincidence, but I do think overall, having two days' rest between games allowed Lebron and Kyrie to be fresh and more efficient while playing big minutes.

[tux]

LeBron played little to no D his first few years in the league.


Probably b/c he was 18 years old. I think any talk of K's contribution to the careers of his USA players probably creates more of a backlash against Duke than it helps Duke. That's why I cringe when someone in the media starts trying to force quotes out of Kobe or Lebron about K's influence. K's legacy and reputation don't depend on it at this point... Let the accomplishments speak for themselves w/o trying to connect dots that probably shouldn't be connected...

[superdave]

A few quick thoughts the morning after:

1. Pretty remarkable comeback by the Cavs, including an excellent job of improving as a team as the series progressed. After Game 4, you could've bet on Cleveland to win the series at 13 to 1 odds.

2. The Cavs were more merciless than GSW in seeking out mismatches, especially in Game 7. Any time a GSW center was on the floor, the Cavs would put him in PNR with either Kyrie or Lebron; Ezeli's 4Q adventures were indeed predictable. And when GSW went small, the Cavs would put Curry in PNR, re-screening until the switch occurred. GSW in contrast was more dedicated to running their off-ball screening and cutting, but that didn't produce enough points in this case. It was sort of an aristocratic approach ("we run real offense no matter what"), but it would've been interesting to see if GSW would've scored more points had they been more bourgeois (use PNR to more often hunt Love [despite the 1 play where he held up well], who played 30 minutes) or more prole (iso Curry on Kyrie).

3. The elongated Finals schedule probably helped the Cavs, who are less deep. Last year's Finals had 3 games played on one day's rest compared to just 1 game this year, which happened to be Game 4, the only game in which the Cavs collapsed in the 4th quarter. That could be coincidence, but I do think overall, having two days' rest between games allowed Lebron and Kyrie to be fresh and more efficient while playing big minutes.


That is an interesting point on the rest between games. I think the NBA and ABC/Espn know which nights they can get great ratings (Sunday, Monday, Thursday) and tried to hit those days. It definitely helped Lebron who has some mileage, and guys like Jefferson too.

Also, great point on the PNR. The two-time reigning league MVP got exploited for the past two weeks. Absolutely exposed. I have to say I am really impressed that Ty Lue comes in midway through the season and as a first time head coach and got this job done against the single greatest team in the history of everything ever according to Espn/538 etc. Lue is the man for the way he pushed all the right buttons and figured out how to defend the 3 and exploit Curry on the defensive end.

Take a look at Curry's stats from regular season to post season - http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/3975/stephen-curry

His post season scoring average dropped 5 points. His fg% went down 6% and his 3pt% went down 5%. Some of that may have been due to his injury a couple of months ago, but in the Finals he looked healthy. I think Cleveland figured out to clog him up some, and he had to work really hard on the other end.

[moonpie23]

Kyrie being singled out by many this morning.......Smith, Barkley, many others......


this was the culmination of the promise that Kyrie made to lebron during his first Allstar game, where he kept setting lebron up over and over again.....as to say, "this is what we can do together if you come back to cleveland."


awesome...

[Lar77]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PExO7fxi8CU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJqIh7OrL-s

[NashvilleDevil]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJqIh7OrL-s

Common denominator of both? HWSNBN played for both teams on the losing end.

[phaedrus]

Common denominator of both? HWSNBN played for both teams on the losing end.

It also reminds me of this, except without the offensive foul and about 8 feet further back:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdPQ3QxDZ1s

Curry has come in for criticism, but it was a well-defended shot, too.

[Ichabod Drain]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJqIh7OrL-s

I don't think Sonya was as happy after last night's.

[Billy Dat]

Some additional thoughts:

-I think the Cleveland win sets up great intrigue for the next few years. In some ways, I think it was the best possible scenario to ensure that these top teams stay together for at least another year. GSW now have the bitter taste of not finishing the job and, with the cap going up, I bet they match Barnes to whatever ridiculous offer sheet he gets because they'll want to run it back. Cleveland just won the title, I imagine the "Big 3" stays together. OKC was so close, I imagine they make another run. San Antonio will have to do some retooling, it'll be interesting to see if Miami and Toronto can retool to make a better challenge to Cleveland. A Cleveland v GSW Finals rubber match would be "Thrilla in Manilla" level drama.

-For a team that was so amazing moving the ball, it really surprised me that GSW went hero ball for hero ball with Cleveland down the stretch. It was even more amazing that nearly every big time player on both teams had chances to make shots in that last 4 minutes...LBJ, Curry, Thompson, Green, Love, Iggy and it was only Kyrie, on his second chance after that missed drive, that was able to deliver.

-Love's defensive stand on Curry will go down as one of the most remarkable sequences...he kept his stance, moved his feet, and forced Curry into a bad shot

-Curry's behind the back pass out of bounds was very telling...that squad was just a little too loosey goosey when it needed to be a little more buttoned up. They walked that edge all year and were usually rewarded.

[moonpie23]

stephen A just really raving about Kyrie abusing the mouthpiece....

[El_Diablo]

So -- is LeBron the next to appear with Uncle Drew?

They will need to put a lot of makeup on LeBron to get him looking as young as Uncle Drew.

[phaedrus]

-Love's defensive stand on Curry will go down as one of the most remarkable sequences...he kept his stance, moved his feet, and forced Curry into a bad shot

-Curry's behind the back pass out of bounds was very telling...that squad was just a little too loosey goosey when it needed to be a little more buttoned up. They walked that edge all year and were usually rewarded.

Curry had a clean look at a 30-footer with Love guarding him, but passed it up in favor of trying to shake Love free a little closer to the line. He ended up missing that closer shot badly. Earlier in the season, would Curry have simply jacked up the longer shot? Given his range, it seemed like a better look. Had he made it, we might be talking about a different outcome.

Edit: I took another look at the reply. It was more like a 35-footer. Question still stands, however.

[kAzE]

Is Kyrie Irving a top 10 player in the NBA now? If he consistently plays defense like he did the past 3 games, I say yes. For sure.

[FerryFor50]

Curry had a clean look at a 30-footer with Love guarding him, but passed it up in favor of trying to shake Love free a little closer to the line. He ended up missing that closer shot badly. Earlier in the season, would Curry have simply jacked up the longer shot? Given his range, it seemed like a better look. Had he made it, we might be talking about a different outcome.

Edit: I took another look at the reply. It was more like a 35-footer. Question still stands, however.

Earlier in the season? How about earlier in the game?

He did jack up a 35 footer against Tristan Thompson - and hit it.

Love did a phenomenal job sticking with Curry and not fouling.

[jimsumner]

75% of Duke NBA Champions won with LeBron James.

I get 60 percent. Three of five.

Are you forgetting Danny Ferry? Or Jeff Mullins?

[Atlanta Duke]

Very happy for LeBron, the Cavs, and long suffering Cleveland fans - having grown up in Pittsburgh I identify with fans from a city that passionately support their teams as one means of responding to often unjustified criticisms of their hometown

As DBR stated in the article on the home page this morning, I also noted that LeBron appeared to ignore Bill Russell during the trophy presentations. Given that I am old enough to have seen Russell play at the end of his magnificent career, I also was disappointed that LeBron seemed to be ignoring a NBA legend.

Fortunately, the New York Times reports this morning that was not the case

James sense of history extends to his game. On the riser, he handed the championship trophy to a teammate and set off to find the great Celtics Center Bill Russell, for whom the N.B.A. Finals M.V.P. award is named). James gave the snow-haired old shot blocker a long hug.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/21/sports/basketball/nba-finals-lebron-james-michael-powell.html?ref=sports

[superdave]

Re-visiting the all-time greats discussion.....Lebron is the first player to lead a team back from a 3-1 deficit in the Finals and he did against the team with the best regular season record and the reigning MVP.

I think that may be among the two or three greatest Finals efforts ever. I'd put it up there with Olajuwon and ahead of anything Jordan did. I cannot speak to stuff from the 502-mid 80s, but Lebron last year and this year in the Finals is the best I have seen.

To me, Lebron moves past Duncan, Bird, Kobe into the top group of players all time along with Jordan, Russell, Wilt, Kareem and Magic. He has a chance to win more titles and get some all time records and be on par with Jordan.

[JNort]

LeBron played little to no D his first few years in the league.

What? He was an elite defender. Has been most if his career. Now that he's older he doesn't try very much in the regular season but in the post season he turns it back on. He has finished 2nd for defensive mvp twice.

[CajunDevil]

Re-visiting the all-time greats discussion....Lebron is the first player to lead a team back from a 3-1 deficit in the Finals and he did against the team with the best regular season record and the reigning MVP.

I think that may be among the two or three greatest Finals efforts ever. I'd put it up there with Olajuwon and ahead of anything Jordan did. I cannot speak to stuff from the 502-mid 80s, but Lebron last year and this year in the Finals is the best I have seen.

To me, Lebron moves past Duncan, Bird, Kobe into the top group of players all time along with Jordan, Russell, Wilt, Kareem and Magic. He has a chance to win more titles and get some all time records and be on par with Jordan.

I agree with this, except I'd go a step further and say it was the best Finals effort ever. Given the nature of the competition, leading in every stat (points, rebs, assists, blocks, steals), no team having come back from 3-1 in Finals history... I can't think of another Finals effort as monumental and historic.

I also agree with you that LeBron passes Duncan, Bird and Kobe. Bron is top five if he retired right now.

[DukeTrinity11]

How many more years do you guys think Bron has as a top 5 player in the NBA? This guy is just a physical specimen...call me crazy but I think LeBron could give a championship contender 10-15 minutes off the bench even in his mid 40s. It's possible we're just at the halfway point of LeBron James' career.

[NSDukeFan]

Kyrie's 3 to take the lead was absolutely filthy.

The chase-down block by LeBron will go down as one of the biggest plays in NBA Finals history.
That play indicated LeBron may still have some of his athleticism left.

Rumor has it Harrison Barnes called Jeff Goodman early this morning to see if he thought he could still get a decent contract next season.

Coach K deserves credit too. LeBron didn't play defense before K took over the Olympic team.

This is just not true.

Also, your first statement makes me laugh. Coach K is a legend, but let's not get ahead of ourselves and comment that he has shaped every Olympian who has played under him. I assume you think Coach K gets credit last year too for Curry and Klay?
Kyrie also wasn't the best defensively before he came to Duke and then...never mind


Wow! Just wow!

1. LeBron with the best basketball play in the history of the sport (The Block)
2. Kyrie's dagger 3 (The Shot)
3. Coming back from 3-1 deficit against the historically great, defending champs to win Game 7 on their home court, especially when no other team in Finals history had ever done it (The Comeback)
4. LeBron being the first player in any playoff series to lead both teams in points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals
5. The Cavs ending Cleveland's championship drought

The consequences of this historic series:
LeBron doubters are silenced once and for all.
Kyrie is a STAR - as good or better than any point guard in the league. Period
Great points about the significance of the series. I'm not ready to anoint Kyrie as good as Curry (though he was this series), Westbrook or Paul, but if he keeps playing like he did this series, improves his defensive consistency and continues to improve his decision making, he has that potential.

Curry had a clean look at a 30-footer with Love guarding him, but passed it up in favor of trying to shake Love free a little closer to the line. He ended up missing that closer shot badly. Earlier in the season, would Curry have simply jacked up the longer shot? Given his range, it seemed like a better look. Had he made it, we might be talking about a different outcome.

Edit: I took another look at the reply. It was more like a 35-footer. Question still stands, however.
I expect Curry thought for sure he would shake Love and get a better shot like he has all year, until last night, when matched up against big guys. Love just played 6 seconds of fantastic defense.

Re-visiting the all-time greats discussion....Lebron is the first player to lead a team back from a 3-1 deficit in the Finals and he did against the team with the best regular season record and the reigning MVP.

I think that may be among the two or three greatest Finals efforts ever. I'd put it up there with Olajuwon and ahead of anything Jordan did. I cannot speak to stuff from the 502-mid 80s, but Lebron last year and this year in the Finals is the best I have seen.

To me, Lebron moves past Duncan, Bird, Kobe into the top group of players all time along with Jordan, Russell, Wilt, Kareem and Magic. He has a chance to win more titles and get some all time records and be on par with Jordan.
I agree with LeBron having to be considered among the top 5 all-time and agree generally with your groupings, but wonder if West (Jerry, not Mark), Robertson (Oscar, not Alvin) or Baylor (Elgin, not university) are still ranked in, or near the top 5-15?

That was a pretty compelling series and provides some answers and leaves lots of questions. I picked the Warriors in 5 and was hoping for them, but this was a series that reminded me of when Jordan or Shaq didn't win MVP, but you knew were still the best. LeBron showed the two time MVP, who I certainly believe deserves those awards, is not currently the best player.

[BigZ]

With a healthy Kyrie the Cavs win the 2015 title and Duke wins the 2011 National Title.

[jipops]

75% of Duke NBA Champions won with LeBron James.


Mullins
Ferry
Battier
Kyrie
Dahntay

More like 60%.

Edit - Dern... Sumner long beat me to that.

[flyingdutchdevil]

That was a pretty compelling series and provides some answers and leaves lots of questions. I picked the Warriors in 5 and was hoping for them, but this was a series that reminded me of when Jordan or Shaq didn't win MVP, but you knew were still the best. LeBron showed the two time MVP, who I certainly believe deserves those awards, is not currently the best player.

I too picked the Warriors in 5 but I couldn't be happier for Lebron and the Cavs for the following reasons:

1) Lebron is something else to watch. Curry is super-human, but Lebron is extraterrestrial. His combination of size, speed, and talent is on another level. That block single-handedly made me realize that Lebron is the best basketball player alive. And I'm not sure it's that close.

2) Kyrie is an offensive stud!!! Those drives! That 3! Wa wa wee wa! And he had a few amazing defensive positions (and a few atrocious defensive possessions all in the same game)

3) I recognize Green's talent, but I don't like him at all. Happy he had nearly a triple-double that no one cares about.

4) Cleveland deserves some good news. 52 years is a long time for a franchise, not to mention a city with three professional franchises!

With that said, I'll end by saying that if Kyrie produces 80% of his offensive efficacy that he showed in the finals coupled with his improved defense, he's definitely top 15 (and potentially top 10) in the NBA. But I want to see sustained defensive intensity.

[BobbyFan]

To me, Lebron moves past Duncan, Bird, Kobe into the top group of players all time along with Jordan, Russell, Wilt, Kareem and Magic. He has a chance to win more titles and get some all time records and be on par with Jordan.

I'd move up LeBron to #3 behind Jordan and Abdul-Jabbar, but he is now top 5 at minimum. He passes Wilt, Russell, and Duncan on my list. He was already ahead of and puts further distance between himself and Magic, Bird, and Kobe, the latter of whom isn't in my top 10.

The past few years, it's been difficult to gauge exactly where LeBron is as a player because he doesn't dial it up until the postseason. But I didn't think he still had it in him to be dominant on both ends to the degree he was. It did help that Kyrie was on a scoring rampage so LeBron could shift some energy to the other end, but he still carried a heavy load with the ball. He's a notch below his peak levels in Miami, but it's not far off.

It was great to see how personally LeBron took the Curry lovefest from this season. Curry rightfully won MVP with his historic regular season. But it had to sting LeBron as to how quickly the perception of him became demoted to just being another superstar like Westbrook, Leonard, etc, when it was less than 12 months ago that LeBron had been the best player in the 2015 Finals. Dude was on a mission in these Finals and Curry didn't come close to matching his focus and intensity.



-Curry's behind the back pass out of bounds was very telling...that squad was just a little too loosey goosey when it needed to be a little more buttoned up. They walked that edge all year and were usually rewarded.

It's a fine line between us against the world and overconfidence/arrogance, and once a team crosses over it's not easy to get the proper mentality back. The Warriors entered this season with a chip on their shoulders with how they felt disrespected as defending champions, and it showed in their regular season. I wonder if the talk of Curry's GOAT season, comparisons with the 96 Bulls, and all got into their heads at the wrong time to some extent. It's otherwise hard to fathom a 73 win team getting get blown five times in the playoffs.

The comments/tweets from Klay Thompson and Speights after game 4 stood out to me, not because they served as motivation for LeBron, as much as it implied that the Warriors felt the series was over at that point. I can't see them making those statements if they were down 3-1. It's speculation, but I think they fully expected to close it out in game 5 at home, even without Green.


Is Kyrie Irving a top 10 player in the NBA now? If he consistently plays defense like he did the past 3 games, I say yes. For sure.

He played better defense, but it's a small sample size. It's akin to anointing him a good defensive player because of his game against Kalin Lucas. He still has questionable decision making, which was masked by his incredible shot making in the postseason. At best, he would enter next season as the 4th best point guard, behind Curry, Westbrook, and Paul.

[BD80]

Jordan's entire 1993 Finals performance.

Jordan who?


LVP for Barnes. Ouch.

http://www.sfgate.com/warriors/article/Barnes-likely-LVP-faces-uncertain-future-with-8312451.php

Barnes states that he hasn't thought about where he will be going. Wonder if he'll Skype the announcement?

In one sense I'm glad he was exposed and won't get the big money it seemed a couple of weeks ago that he would be getting. On the other hand, it would have been fun to see him get the superstar contract and watch him try to deal with the pressure of being the team star and getting the focus of opposing teams' defense.

[DukeTrinity11]

He played better defense, but it's a small sample size. It's akin to anointing him a good defensive player because of his game against Kalin Lucas. He still has questionable decision making, which was masked by his incredible shot making in the postseason. At best, he would enter next season as the 4th best point guard, behind Curry, Westbrook, and Paul.
Irving's playoff run this year has elevated him to the 4th best PG in the NBA behind Curry, Paul and Westbrook.

I don't see the argument to rate Lillard, Wall or Lowry higher anymore. Sure you can point to defense but Dame isn't a good defender either and KI has proven that he can play elite defense in important stretches in games of significance. I'd rather have a guy like him with ridiculous handles and shot making ability over a consistently good defender like Lowry who struggles on offense for long periods of time.

[flyingdutchdevil]

Irving's playoff run this year has elevated him to the 4th best PG in the NBA behind Curry, Paul and Westbrook.

I don't see the argument to rate Lillard, Wall or Lowry higher anymore. Sure you can point to defense but Dame isn't a good defender either and KI has proven that he can play elite defense in important stretches in games of significance. I'd rather have a guy like him with ridiculous handles and shot making ability over a consistently good defender like Lowry who struggles on offense for long periods of time.

Kyrie has never played elite defense. He played good defense, and a few positions it was really good defense. And if Kyrie played elite defense, what do Butler and Leonard play? Outrageously outstanding defense? Is that better than elite?

I'll argue that Kyrie is an elite scorer. But let's not get ahead of ourselves with his defense.

[DukeTrinity11]

Kyrie has never played elite defense. He played good defense, and a few positions it was really good defense. And if Kyrie played elite defense, what do Butler and Leonard play? Outrageously outstanding defense? Is that better than elite?

I'll argue that Kyrie is an elite scorer. But let's not get ahead of ourselves with his defense.
Butler and Leonard play consistently elite defense. My point is Irving was able to contain Curry 1 on 1 for a large portion of these playoffs quite successfully and when he needed to the most, he stepped up on that side of the ball.

I've always felt that defense was mostly mental and effort-related; it helps to have a freakish wingspan like Andre Roberson or catcher-like hands ala Kawhi Leonard but there's no reason James Harden or Kyrie Irving can't be great defenders one day if they fully commit themselves to it. There's no athletic or physical limitation that is stopping them from improving on that end.

[CDu]

I agree with those who are saying let's pump the brakes on Irving. He had a phenomenal couple of games in these Finals in games 3-5, and he hit a phenomenal shot in game 7. He also played poorly in games 1, 2, and 6, and didn't exactly stand out in game 7 until the shot of shots (9-22, 23 points, 1 assist, 2 TOs prior to that big shot). And his defense generally ranged from awful to solid, with occasional moments of brilliance.

I think Irving did a lot to establish/improve his reputation, but he still has some work to do in terms of consistency. He certainly has top-10 talent, but he has not had top-10 performance for any extensive time. Hopefully this championship journey helps him realize that talent. But we don't need to rush to judgment in proclaiming his arrival as one of the top-10. Let's enjoy his accomplishment and hope the journey continues on this path. If it does, honors like that will be clear.

Also, I'm totally not getting the glee and bashing of Curry. Yes, he played poorly. But why are so many folks jumping on him with such glee? He was very classy in defeat, in spite of what has to be monumental disappointment (and a disappointment that was largely created by his own struggles). He did everything you'd expect of a competitor: waited around to congratulate the victors, faced the media and was respectful. Seems unnecessarily vindictive to throw shade his way.

[FerryFor50]

Kyrie has never played elite defense. He played good defense, and a few positions it was really good defense. And if Kyrie played elite defense, what do Butler and Leonard play? Outrageously outstanding defense? Is that better than elite?

I'll argue that Kyrie is an elite scorer. But let's not get ahead of ourselves with his defense.

Irving's on-ball defense: Very good to elite
Irving's off-ball defense: Meh

He also had trouble fighting through screens (granted, many of them were moving screens) and got switched on to larger players in the post occasionally.

[cato]

I agree with those who are saying let's pump the brakes on Irving. He had a phenomenal couple of games in these Finals in games 3-5, and he hit a phenomenal shot in game 7. He also played poorly in games 1, 2, and 6, and didn't exactly stand out in game 7 until that shot (9-22, 23 points, 1 assist, 2 TOs prior to that big shot). And his defense generally ranged from awful to solid, with occasional moments of brilliance.

I think Irving did a lot to establish/improve his reputation, but he still has some work to do in terms of consistency. He certainly has top-10 talent, but he has not had top-10 performance for any extensive time. Hopefully this championship journey helps him realize that talent.

At a minimum, his play this post season put him closer to top 10 than bum-slayer, so he's go that going for him. Well, that and an instrumental role in securing a ring.

:p

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Among all the correct things you guys have said about Lebron and Kyrie, shout out to Festus Ezeli. He was totally eaten alive when he was in the game. Missed several close range shots in the first few minutes that could have forced the Cavs to play from behind the whole first half, and then instantly gave up two 3-pointers to Lebron when he was inexplicably put in the game in the 4th quarter to give up the late Warriors lead. Awful.

Underappreciated factor here. You could argue this was a series-losing decision by Kerr. His reinsertion back in the game was a huge turning point. The dude was useless the entire series. Despite starting, he only managed 11 minutes on the floor in Game 7, yet somehow he was reinserted during critical minutes in the middle of the 4th quarter? Lebron scored a very quick 6 points on him on back-to-back possessions. Maybe Lebron would have done that to anyone, I don't know.

[CDu]

At a minimum, his play this post season put him closer to top 10 than bum-slayer, so he's go that going for him. Well, that and an instrumental role in securing a ring.

:p

Yes, he's come a long way from where he was two years ago. Absolutely.

[flyingdutchdevil]

At a minimum, his play this post season put him closer to top 10 than bum-slayer, so he's go that going for him. Well, that and an instrumental role in securing a ring.

:p

That was one of my favorite debates as a spectator on DBR, mainly because of how funny bum-slayer sounds.

[kAzE]

The thing that always impresses me about Kyrie is that he always answers the call when it matters the most. He's always been one of the most clutch guys, even since his rookie year, I think there was some crazy stat out there that showed how good he was in the last 5 minutes of close games. I disagree that he was bad in game 6. 20 points in the first half. His efficiency wasn't great, but nobody's efficiency is good in the finals (out side of guys who only shoot dunks). That's why his game 5 performance is even more ridiculous than at first glance.

[CDu]

Irving's on-ball defense: Very good to elite
Irving's off-ball defense: Meh

He also had trouble fighting through screens (granted, many of them were moving screens) and got switched on to larger players in the post occasionally.

I would mostly agree with this. When he is dialed in on the ball against a PG, Irving is just fine defensively. I wouldn't say "very good to elite", but I'd say fine. But he is still quite awful off-ball. On top of getting stuck on off-ball screens, he frequently gets caught ball-watching and lets his man get easy cuts for layups. And he struggles in the on-ball screen game, too.

The good thing is that those are - in theory - fixable traits. It's a matter of focus and awareness. He has the physical tools to do it. It's just a matter of doing it.


Underappreciated factor here. You could argue this was a series-losing decision by Kerr. His reinsertion back in the game was a huge turning point. The dude was useless the entire series. Despite starting, he only managed 11 minutes on the floor in Game 7, yet somehow he was reinserted during critical minutes in the middle of the 4th quarter? Lebron scored a very quick 6 points on him on back-to-back possessions. Maybe Lebron would have done that to anyone, I don't know.

I thought Kerr did a very poor job all series. The Cavs exploited both Ezeli and Bogut religiously, yet Kerr kept going to them. He even in theory understood that the bigs were hurting the team, playing those guys less than 15 mpg. But only 4 minutes for Barbosa? Only 16 minutes for Livingston? It was not a well played series by the Warriors' coach.

[flyingdutchdevil]

The thing that always impresses me about Kyrie is that he always answers the call when it matters the most. He's always been one of the most clutch guys, even since his rookie year, I think there was some crazy stat out there that showed how good he was in the last 5 minutes of close games. I disagree that he was bad in game 6. 20 points in the first half. His efficiency wasn't great, but nobody's efficiency is good in the finals (out side of guys who only shoot dunks). That's why his game 5 performance is even more ridiculous than at first glance.

I agree with this. His clutch performance is really strong, especially in the right match-ups (read: not Klay but definitely Curry).

Kyrie is a an exceptional Robin, especially a Robin to a Batman who is good at everything. Lebron doesn't need more assisting or leadership, he needs defenders (Shump, JR, Tristan), rebounders (Tristan, Love), and scorers (Irving).

[CDu]

I agree with this. His clutch performance is really strong, especially in the right match-ups (read: not Klay but definitely Curry).

Kyrie is a an exceptional Robin, especially a Robin to a Batman who is good at everything. Lebron doesn't need more assisting or leadership, he needs defenders (Shump, JR, Tristan), rebounders (Tristan, Love), and scorers (Irving).

Yeah, I think the addition of LeBron has really helped Irving, because LeBron can do the thing on offense that Irving struggles at: running the offense and creating for others. Irving is at his best when he doesn't have to worry about anything but scoring. In other words, if Irving can play scoring guard and not PG, that's the optimal situation for him. With LeBron able to carry so much of the playmaking burden for the team, it allows Irving to focus on his iso game. And with James on the floor, it helps free up some room for Irving to succeed in his iso game.

[FerryFor50]

Yeah, I think the addition of LeBron has really helped Irving, because LeBron can do the thing on offense that Irving struggles at: running the offense and creating for others. Irving is at his best when he doesn't have to worry about anything but scoring. In other words, if Irving can play scoring guard and not PG, that's the optimal situation for him. With LeBron able to carry so much of the playmaking burden for the team, it allows Irving to focus on his iso game. And with James on the floor, it helps free up some room for Irving to succeed in his iso game.

Adding LeBron also helps Kyrie from a mentor perspective - the Cavs added someone Kyrie greatly respects, so when he sees how hard LeBron works at improving, he understands what it takes. I think part of Kyrie's issues were maturity related. LeBron has helped Kyrie grow up a bit.

[flyingdutchdevil]

Yeah, I think the addition of LeBron has really helped Irving, because LeBron can do the thing on offense that Irving struggles at: running the offense and creating for others. Irving is at his best when he doesn't have to worry about anything but scoring. In other words, if Irving can play scoring guard and not PG, that's the optimal situation for him. With LeBron able to carry so much of the playmaking burden for the team, it allows Irving to focus on his iso game. And with James on the floor, it helps free up some room for Irving to succeed in his iso game.

Was I the only one who was shocked that Kyrie passed to Lebron on their last offensive possession instead of shooting it amongst the trees? It was absolutely the right play, but it also led to Green murdering Lebron and Lebron either a) getting injured or b) Lebron milking the spotlight.

Anywho, like you said, Lebron's presence allows Kyrie to be come along as a playmaker slowly and on Kyrie's/Lebron's time, not the Cav's. Lebron is the best thing for Kyrie's development.

[FerryFor50]

Oh, this one is good...

https://www.facebook.com/BigBoy/videos/10153479737145303/

[Lar77]

Also, I'm totally not getting the glee and bashing of Curry. Yes, he played poorly. But why are so many folks jumping on him with such glee? He was very classy in defeat, in spite of what has to be monumental disappointment (and a disappointment that was largely created by his own struggles). He did everything you'd expect of a competitor: waited around to congratulate the victors, faced the media and was respectful. Seems unnecessarily vindictive to throw shade his way.

Thanks CDu, for stating this. I don't get it either. Someone on the radio the other day said that in Game 6 Curry went from good guy to bad guy and LeBron went from bad guy to good guy. Is it just a reaction to the media hyping?

I've heard various stories from Davidson people (granted, not exactly unbiased) that he really is a good person.

My only knock on him as a player is his defense (the occasional bad pass is annoying, and last night contributed to the loss, but part of his game). That's mindset, and this series might change the mindset for the better.

[kAzE]

Oh, this one is good...

https://www.facebook.com/BigBoy/videos/10153479737145303/

Oh man, that's cold, they put Channing Frye in it, but no Kevin Love??

[kAzE]

Thanks CDu, for stating this. I don't get it either. Someone on the radio the other day said that in Game 6 Curry went from good guy to bad guy and LeBron went from bad guy to good guy. Is it just a reaction to the media hyping?

I've heard various stories from Davidson people (granted, not exactly unbiased) that he really is a good person.

My only knock on him as a player is his defense (the occasional bad pass is annoying, and last night contributed to the loss, but part of his game). That's mindset, and this series might change the mindset for the better.

I think Curry gets hated on because he's reached Tom Brady-like "Golden Boy" status. People loved him last year as the plucky upstart, but since he's been heavily scrutinized this entire past year, nobody has seemed to find a chink in his armor. He's too perfect. I think people are more willing to get behind someone like LeBron, who has some personality flaws, a whole redemption arc behind him, and the weight of an entire city on his back.

It's still early for Steph, he's still got a lot of career to play out. He'll be the underdog going forward, so I think public opinion will shift back in his favor. The whole Ayesha thing was overblown. I never thought her opinion should have mattered that much anyway . . she's a family member, of course she's going to be biased. It's not like she's being paid for basketball analysis. I had nothing bad to say about Curry, both he and Draymond were pretty classy in defeat. They get points with me for their show of sportsmanship.

[superdave]

How many more years do you guys think Bron has as a top 5 player in the NBA? This guy is just a physical specimen...call me crazy but I think LeBron could give a championship contender 10-15 minutes off the bench even in his mid 40s. It's possible we're just at the halfway point of LeBron James' career.

Well, I dont know that anyone wants to play that long. The season is a grind. Recall Ray Allen coming on to the Heat roster late in the season to give his body time to rest.

I would look to the sheer number of games Lebron has played as a signal of what the upper limit is. He has played in 987 career games, #134 all-time. That is 61.2% of the total number that the leader played (Robert Parish) and only includes regular season games.

Add in Parish's 184 playoff games and he played in 1,795 games. Add in Kareem's playoff games and he's the actual leader at 1,797. Add in James' playoff games and he's 1,186, which is 66% of the number Kareem played. Lebron is 31. Parish retired at 43, Kareem at 41, Stockton and Malone at 40.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/leaders/g_career.html

I would say 1,500 games is easily do-able. That's 3+ more seasons for him. If he does indeed play until age 40, that is eight more seasons at ~100 total regular season and playoff games. At that point James would be getting close to 2,000 career games played. That is unprecedented. But so is he as a physical specimen. I would bet he cuts back his minutes and skips the second game in back to backs starting a few years from now. He could play 5 seasons from age 36-40 and play 60/82 regular season games plus the playoffs and still likely pass Kareem.

I just hope he continues to play at the level he did last night for a little while longer because it is a treat to watch.

[COYS]

Thanks CDu, for stating this. I don't get it either. Someone on the radio the other day said that in Game 6 Curry went from good guy to bad guy and LeBron went from bad guy to good guy. Is it just a reaction to the media hyping?

I've heard various stories from Davidson people (granted, not exactly unbiased) that he really is a good person.

My only knock on him as a player is his defense (the occasional bad pass is annoying, and last night contributed to the loss, but part of his game). That's mindset, and this series might change the mindset for the better.

Also, to me it's obvious that Curry never was 100% comfortable after his injury, even if the GSW reported that everything was fine and dandy. Curry put in one of the best seasons in NBA history during the regular season and up until his injury. It was a truly phenomenal season. I'm disappointed we didn't get to see Curry at full capacity through much of the playoffs and particularly in the Finals. This is not meant to take anything away from Kyrie or Lebron or Cleveland, but Curry's injury clearly affected his play. He went from being unstoppable to being just really good, which was still enough have his team only a few points from a championship. Still, he was clearly off the pace. His PER was down almost 10(!) points in the postseason from 31.56 (phenomenal) to 22.36 (really good but far from transcendent). All his other stats fell, too. Again, he was clearly really good. But he was not the same world beater that he was before his injury.

[JNort]

Thanks CDu, for stating this. I don't get it either. Someone on the radio the other day said that in Game 6 Curry went from good guy to bad guy and LeBron went from bad guy to good guy. Is it just a reaction to the media hyping?

I've heard various stories from Davidson people (granted, not exactly unbiased) that he really is a good person.

My only knock on him as a player is his defense (the occasional bad pass is annoying, and last night contributed to the loss, but part of his game). That's mindset, and this series might change the mindset for the better.

Curry is an outstanding guy. People just like to hate.

How to pick a hater:

Curry haters: anything with his mouth piece or him having fun they criticize despite it not being a problem.

Lebron haters: "he whines" "he flops" lol at people like that who don't know what they are talking about

[duke4ever19]

It's gotta suck to be Anderson Varejão, at least as far as ring-hunting goes.

Apparently he's eligible to get a ring from the Cavs, but the players have to vote on it. It would be easier to give him one if he had been traded pretty much anywhere else but GSW. I could see him getting a ring if he had been traded to somewhere like OKC and had been part of forcing the Warriors to the brink. Just a tough spot to find yourself in.

[Eternal Outlaw]

Curry/Warriors went from golden boys to cheered against because of how they faced adversity imo. It's really easy to have fun and not complain to refs when winning all the time. Then they went down 1-3 to the Thunder and you could see them crying after any call against them. They were all hoots and glee after game 4 in the Finals and even took shots at LeBron but then once the tides turn against them in the series, same thing as the Thunder series, they showed they could cry with anyone.

They basically went from the biggest preening team in the league to the biggest whiners.

[superdave]

I agree with those who are saying let's pump the brakes on Irving. He had a phenomenal couple of games in these Finals in games 3-5, and he hit a phenomenal shot in game 7. He also played poorly in games 1, 2, and 6, and didn't exactly stand out in game 7 until the shot of shots (9-22, 23 points, 1 assist, 2 TOs prior to that big shot). And his defense generally ranged from awful to solid, with occasional moments of brilliance.

I think Irving did a lot to establish/improve his reputation, but he still has some work to do in terms of consistency. He certainly has top-10 talent, but he has not had top-10 performance for any extensive time. Hopefully this championship journey helps him realize that talent. But we don't need to rush to judgment in proclaiming his arrival as one of the top-10. Let's enjoy his accomplishment and hope the journey continues on this path. If it does, honors like that will be clear.

Also, I'm totally not getting the glee and bashing of Curry. Yes, he played poorly. But why are so many folks jumping on him with such glee? He was very classy in defeat, in spite of what has to be monumental disappointment (and a disappointment that was largely created by his own struggles). He did everything you'd expect of a competitor: waited around to congratulate the victors, faced the media and was respectful. Seems unnecessarily vindictive to throw shade his way.

I agree with your assessment of Kyrie. I think a big issue for him is his body is not sturdy. It would take 10 minutes to figure out what injuries he's had since the infamous toe and the corresponding on-court absences. So I wonder if in the back of his mind he knows he can sell out on the defensive end like some guys and stay on the court. He's just not built for that. But to be the second best player on a champion, and to be the second best player in the series, is an awesome place to be at his young age.

As for Curry, the tossing of the annoying mouthpiece and his wife's stupid tweet will give a lot of people (me included) reason enough to dislike him. He has been overexposed for two years now, the same way Lebron was around The Decision. When you get over-exposed, people grow tired of you and turn negative on you. That's where I am on Curry, and he gave me enough reasons with his behavior in Game 6 to justify it. I was there with Lebron in 2012 when he took his talents to South Beach. But I flipped back to a positive view when he went back to Cleveland, so Curry could redeem himself.

To add to that, I have people asking me if Curry is the best point guard ever. Huh? He's won one title. Ask me when he gets four and we can talk. Greatest shooter ever, but not greatest point guard.

[superdave]

My coworker was joking about buying a Cavs bandwagon shirt. So I googled Cavs Bandwagon Tshirt and this popped up -

http://mtonews.com/cleveland-cavaliers-fans-created-new-t-shirt-blasting-steph-currys-wife-going-far/

Too good not to share....

[Mabdul Doobakus]

How many more years do you guys think Bron has as a top 5 player in the NBA? This guy is just a physical specimen...call me crazy but I think LeBron could give a championship contender 10-15 minutes off the bench even in his mid 40s. It's possible we're just at the halfway point of LeBron James' career.

I think this will work in the opposite direction. He is a physical specimen, but those attributes will start to wane like they do for everyone else...the speed, the power. Now, maybe he's so far out ahead of everyone else that he can afford to lose a step or two, maybe. But more likely when those physical gifts go, when he can't just bullrush people or outrun them on the way to the basket, he's going to lose what makes him Lebron. His outside shot regressed significantly this year. He's also got a lot of minutes on that body. It's possible that when he declines, he declines fast.

[luburch]

I think this will work in the opposite direction. He is a physical specimen, but those attributes will start to wane like they do for everyone else...the speed, the power. Now, maybe he's so far out ahead of everyone else that he can afford to lose a step or two, maybe. But more likely when those physical gifts go, when he can't just bullrush people or outrun them on the way to the basket, he's going to lose what makes him Lebron. His outside shot regressed significantly this year. He's also got a lot of minutes on that body. It's possible that when he declines, he declines fast.

I think when his athleticism starts to fade he'll start playing more at the 4. He already does it when the Cavs go small and it will let him keep his advantage even longer.

I'm curious to see if LeBron can find his outside jumper again. It would certainly make his aging more graceful.

[phaedrus]

I would say 1,500 games is easily do-able. That's 3+ more seasons for him. If he does indeed play until age 40, that is eight more seasons at ~100 total regular season and playoff games. At that point James would be getting close to 2,000 career games played. That is unprecedented. But so is he as a physical specimen. I would bet he cuts back his minutes and skips the second game in back to backs starting a few years from now. He could play 5 seasons from age 36-40 and play 60/82 regular season games plus the playoffs and still likely pass Kareem.



(A variation of a DBR tradition.)

Kareem scored 38,387 points in his career. LeBron has scored 26833 and thus needs 11,555 points to pass Kareem.

Assuming LeBron plays 75 games a season, he will need to average:

38.5 points per game for 4 more seasons
30.8 points per game for 5 more seasons
25.7 points per game for 6 more seasons
22.0 points per game for 7 more seasons
19.3 points per game for 8 more seasons
17.1 points per game for 9 more seasons

I have a hard time seeing him stick around for more than six additional seasons, and I think he will be hard-pressed to average 25.7 ppg over those seasons (he averaged 25.3 over the last two). But maybe I'm wrong and he stays in the league even as his production starts to decline, in which case it could be close.

[Mabdul Doobakus]

I don't think I'm "hating" on Curry.

He's a great player, obviously. A champion caliber two time MVP. He definitely drastically underperformed this series relative to his regular season output, though. Curry is what makes GSW special, and when he's subpar, GSW is not even sniffing "greatest team ever" status. Maybe he was hurt, but we can only speculate. He had great games here and there, but maybe his injuries just made him inconsistent? Nobody here knows for sure.

But this is two years in a row where NBA Finals Curry doesn't quite live up to regular season MVP Curry. Is this a matchup problem specific to the Cavs? I don't know. But as someone who thought he was the best player in the league up until this series, I think it's glaringly obvious that he is not, no matter what his regular season stats may suggest. Maybe people are hating on him, or maybe they're just adjusting to reality.

[CDu]

I don't think I'm "hating" on Curry.

He's a great player, obviously. A champion caliber two time MVP. He definitely drastically underperformed this series relative to his regular season output, though. Curry is what makes GSW special, and when he's subpar, GSW is not even sniffing "greatest team ever" status. Maybe he was hurt, but we can only speculate. He had great games here and there, but maybe his injuries just made him inconsistent? Nobody here knows for sure.

But this is two years in a row where NBA Finals Curry doesn't quite live up to regular season MVP Curry. Is this a matchup problem specific to the Cavs? I don't know. But as someone who thought he was the best player in the league up until this series, I think it's glaringly obvious that he is not, no matter what his regular season stats may suggest. Maybe people are hating on him, or maybe they're just adjusting to reality.

What you have described is not hating. But many of the comments in this thread aren't simply "he's not the best player in the NBA". There is just a bunch of stuff to the effect of "suck on it, Mouthpiece!" in this thread. You can read through the thread and find examples.

I completely agree that Curry isn't the best player in the NBA. He's weak defensively, struggles against physical play, and if he isn't hitting his shot he doesn't always bring much else to the table. He's the best shooter on the planet, for sure, but not the best player. But folks are gleefully bashing him at a visceral level well beyond that he isn't the best player in the NBA. I'd get that with Draymond Green or Varejao, who seem to openly elicit contempt with their actions (though Green was very respectful of Cleveland in the post-game too). But the Curry bashing seems excessive and out of place.

[flyingdutchdevil]

What you have described is not hating. But many of the comments in this thread aren't simply "he's not the best player in the NBA". There is just a bunch of stuff to the effect of "suck on it, Mouthpiece!" in this thread. You can read through the thread and find examples.

I completely agree that Curry isn't the best player in the NBA. He's weak defensively, struggles against physical play, and if he isn't hitting his shot he doesn't always bring much else to the table. He's the best shooter on the planet, for sure, but not the best player. But folks are gleefully bashing him at a visceral level well beyond that he isn't the best player in the NBA. I'd get that with Draymond Green or Varejao, who seem to openly elicit contempt with their actions (though Green was very respectful of Cleveland in the post-game too). But the Curry bashing seems excessive and out of place.

I think the Curry hate is a little weird too, but I get it. I personal have no problem with Curry and hope him the best (unlike Green), but superdave did a pretty good job. It's overexposure. Pure and simple.

Between Curry being the darling of the NBA who cannot do wrong, we've seen a few things that have bugged my friends. That list includes the mouthpiece (it is gross. That isn't debatable), Riley Curry getting more media attention than Tristan Thompson, Ayesha Curry pulling a Giselle, Curry's Game 6 outburst, and being Draymond Green's teammate (okay, I made that last one up).

[JNort]

I agree with your assessment of Kyrie. I think a big issue for him is his body is not sturdy. It would take 10 minutes to figure out what injuries he's had since the infamous toe and the corresponding on-court absences. So I wonder if in the back of his mind he knows he can sell out on the defensive end like some guys and stay on the court. He's just not built for that. But to be the second best player on a champion, and to be the second best player in the series, is an awesome place to be at his young age.

As for Curry, the tossing of the annoying mouthpiece and his wife's stupid tweet will give a lot of people (me included) reason enough to dislike him. He has been overexposed for two years now, the same way Lebron was around The Decision. When you get over-exposed, people grow tired of you and turn negative on you. That's where I am on Curry, and he gave me enough reasons with his behavior in Game 6 to justify it. I was there with Lebron in 2012 when he took his talents to South Beach. But I flipped back to a positive view when he went back to Cleveland, so Curry could redeem himself.

To add to that, I have people asking me if Curry is the best point guard ever. Huh? He's won one title. Ask me when he gets four and we can talk. Greatest shooter ever, but not greatest point guard.

I find it comical that anyone can have a problem with his mouth piece. He behaved about how you would want your strategy player to in that situation, he stood up for himself and said enough is enough and he was tired of being screwed over. If anything I gained respect for him after how he handled things in game 6.

Maybe we are just opposites cause "The decision" made me a Lebron fan.

I also think rings don't matter but that's just me. Teams get rings, not players.

[FerryFor50]

I find it comical that anyone can have a problem with his mouth piece. He behaved about how you would want your strategy player to in that situation, he stood up for himself and said enough is enough and he was tired of being screwed over. If anything I gained respect for him after how he handled things in game 6.

Maybe we are just opposites cause "The decision" made me a Lebron fan.

I also think rings don't matter but that's just me. Teams get rings, not players.

I think a lot of the "hate" for Curry is due to the incessant media adulation, as well as some of the external stuff, like Ayesha Curry complaining about refs. He also has some of the same attributes that turn people off of LeBron - a kind of "phoniness" to him. But that's pretty much it. He's an elite shooter and scorer.

Usually people get sick of the news cycle. The game 6 tantrum didn't help matters.

[-jk]

What you have described is not hating. But many of the comments in this thread aren't simply "he's not the best player in the NBA". There is just a bunch of stuff to the effect of "suck on it, Mouthpiece!" in this thread. You can read through the thread and find examples.

...

Yeah, perhaps not DBR's finest moment...

-jk

[moonpie23]

I think Curry gets hated on because he's reached Tom Brady-like "Golden Boy" status. .

whoa!! hating on the mouthpiece is one thing, but saying that he's become a despicable, loathed, liar and cheater is a bit over the top......tell me one single time he and/or his entire coaching staff cheated to get wins....


yeah, he's choked away the biggest game 7 in nba history, but that's no reason to compare him to brady....

[kAzE]

whoa!! hating on the mouthpiece is one thing, but saying that he's become a despicable, loathed, liar and cheater is a bit over the top...tell me one single time he and/or his entire coaching staff cheated to get wins...


yeah, he's choked away the biggest game 7 in nba history, but that's no reason to compare him to brady...

This is EXACTLY what I'm talking about. You're just supporting my argument.

[moonpie23]

This is EXACTLY what I'm talking about. You're just supporting my argument.

oh, i thought you were saying that curry hadn't earned that kind of hatred like brady DEFINITELY has....

i misread your reverse sarcasm...

[kAzE]

oh, i thought you were saying that curry hadn't earned that kind of hatred like brady DEFINITELY has...

i misread your reverse sarcasm...

Dude . . that's your opinion. I have no problem with Brady whatsoever. There's plenty of people who don't agree with you on Brady. Just like some people hate on Curry. I have no problem with Curry, but his haters exist.

[OldPhiKap]

Steph Curry is an incredible basketball player, under some unimaginable pressure.

He probably handled some off the off-court and emotional things a lot better than I would, not as well as some others.

I understand that there are haters, always will be. I hate Michael Jordan, even though I'm told by objective observers that he did not, in fact, suck raw rotten eggs in the noonday sun of sweltering summer (as I contend). Nature of the beast.


Really glad for Kyrie. What a great player and glad to have our all-too-brief association with him.

[mgtr]

I am a great Curry fan, and thought GSW would just run away with the series. Boy, was I wrong. Congrats to the Cavs and all associated with them.

[Black Mambo]

Duke (and UK) offering James' son already? Say it aint so...

http://espn.go.com/nba/playoffs/2016/story/_/id/16362353/nba-finals-2016-lebron-james-cleveland-cavaliers-bask-nba-title-glory

(scroll down just past the first image)

[MartyClark]

Duke (and UK) offering James' son already? Say it aint so...

http://espn.go.com/nba/playoffs/2016/story/_/id/16362353/nba-finals-2016-lebron-james-cleveland-cavaliers-bask-nba-title-glory

(scroll down just past the first image)

Not so sure. They reference " a source" for this.

[Black Mambo]

Not so sure. They reference " a source" for this.

Journalism at it's finest...

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Rewatched the second half... LBJ's massive block was such a game changer. Followed by Kyrie's 3.

What a fun way to end basketball season. Great game. Hate to say this, because it sounds so cliche, but Cavs wanted it more.

[ChillinDuke]

Rewatched the second half... LBJ's massive block was such a game changer. Followed by Kyrie's 3.

What a fun way to end basketball season. Great game. Hate to say this, because it sounds so cliche, but Cavs wanted it more.

All things considered, I didn't think the game was truly great basketball, although I will admit the ending was great. But it was better than most of the rest of the series. And I was definitely rooting for Cleveland, which is crazy because I hated The Decision so, so, so much at that time. (Lebron has really restored my allegiances since he returned to Cleveland.)

But man, oh man, oh man. That block. That massive block. Watching that game, in those circumstances, at that moment, and watching that block. That was just nuts. One of those moments that you just drop your jaw and go "WOW."

The fact that they won after that play was almost not surprising. That block was the signature moment of the game to me. I'll never forget the feeling of pure awe as the play developed. A frozen moment in time that will forever remain etched in my (and many others') memory.

- Chillin

[Mabdul Doobakus]

The end of the game was an abomination for a basketball standpoint. Both teams combined to make 1 of their last 17 shots. The ball movement and shot quality were terrible. But it doesn't really matter.

[cato]

The end of the game was an abomination for a basketball standpoint. Both teams combined to make 1 of their last 17 shots. The ball movement and shot quality were terrible. But it doesn't really matter.

That 1 was pretty nice, though.

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Joe Giglio ‏@JoeGiglioSports

Through their age-31 seasons:

Jordan: 3x champ, 3x MVP, 150.0 win shares
LeBron: 3x champ, 4x MVP, 192.5 win shares


Granted, Lebron had played more years by age 31, but still interesting. I don't really know what a win share is or how it's calculated, but sharing is caring, so it's obviously important.

[Duke76]

ESPN clocked LeBron at 19 mph to perfectly time the Iguadola Block. A fraction later it would be goaltending.Great game 7,but very happy the Cavaliers are the victors.Golden State had a historic season, but now its hollow being second place.

remind you of any college basketball season????like 2 years ago

[MChambers]

Joe Giglio ‏@JoeGiglioSports

Through their age-31 seasons:

Jordan: 3x champ, 3x MVP, 150.0 win shares
LeBron: 3x champ, 4x MVP, 192.5 win shares


Granted, Lebron had played more years by age 31, but still interesting. I don't really know what a win share is or how it's calculated, but sharing is caring, so it's obviously important.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fancy-stats/wp/2016/06/20/lebron-james-passes-michael-jordan-as-most-valuable-player-in-nba-history/

[slower]

Krunch time Kyrie and King James bring a title to Cleveland
I do wonder who "The Tongue Wagger" was pulling for tonight.

If you're referring to Michael Jordan - who gives a fraction of a crap what he thinks?

[JNort]

I think a lot of the "hate" for Curry is due to the incessant media adulation, as well as some of the external stuff, like Ayesha Curry complaining about refs. He also has some of the same attributes that turn people off of LeBron - a kind of "phoniness" to him. But that's pretty much it. He's an elite shooter and scorer.

Usually people get sick of the news cycle. The game 6 tantrum didn't help matters.

Yeah I get the hate if they are just tired of the media attention, but why hate the player for it?

Also I think it's more of the opposite of what you said. People hate Steph, Lebron and Cam because they are genuine. People have gotten to where they hate honesty in sports and would rather hear coach speak or something ridiculous. Hence why so many liked Peyton Manning, dude is as game as they come.

[phaedrus]

remind you of any college basketball season????like 2 years ago

You mean this block?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNGS3BSm0bk

Or this game?

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2015/04/05/kentucky_loses_photos_of_shocked_sad_kentucky_play ers_fans_and_john_calipari.html

[Saratoga2]

Lebron is a great player and deserves some of the adulation he receives, but basketball remains a team game and other Cleveland players contributed in a big way to let them bring home the championship. Kyrie was great through the series as were others. I think it is the medias fault when heaping the attention on just one player. I am not a fan of the Cleveland approach of just giving the ball to Lebron and let him dribble the clock down before trying to make something happen. The offense tends to stagnate. Kyrie was an alternative and his clever ball handling at least offered some alternative to Lebron. Had Golden State hit anything at all in the end of game scenario, they would have won.

[Billy Dat]

Lebron is a great player and deserves some of the adulation he receives, but basketball remains a team game and other Cleveland players contributed in a big way to let them bring home the championship. Kyrie was great through the series as were others. I think it is the medias fault when heaping the attention on just one player. I am not a fan of the Cleveland approach of just giving the ball to Lebron and let him dribble the clock down before trying to make something happen. The offense tends to stagnate. Kyrie was an alternative and his clever ball handling at least offered some alternative to Lebron. Had Golden State hit anything at all in the end of game scenario, they would have won.

I actually thought that the strategic decision to screen and re-screen until they got the match-up they wanted, which was usually the big on Lebron or Curry on Kyrie - was brilliant. It wore Curry down and also demoralized him, and Lebron was able to usually exploit his match-up, especially when it was Festus in Game 7. It was certainly an contrast to the Warriors usual ball movement, but look at the shots GSW took down the stretch - also all iso-ball 1-on-1s. In the last 5 minutes, everyone missed on both side, save for Kyrie's dagger.

[moonpie23]

Had Golden State hit anything at all in the end of game scenario, they would have won.

how did you come to this interesting conclusion?.....seems like speculation to me.....

[Ichabod Drain]

Lebron is a great player and deserves some of the adulation he receives, but basketball remains a team game and other Cleveland players contributed in a big way to let them bring home the championship. Kyrie was great through the series as were others. I think it is the medias fault when heaping the attention on just one player. I am not a fan of the Cleveland approach of just giving the ball to Lebron and let him dribble the clock down before trying to make something happen. The offense tends to stagnate. Kyrie was an alternative and his clever ball handling at least offered some alternative to Lebron. Had Golden State hit anything at all in the end of game scenario, they would have won.

FWIW, there were some really great defensive stands at the end of the game by Cleveland. Also I believe Kyrie's 3 was the only bucket Cleveland had in the last four minutes so they could have hit a couple more shots as well.

[kAzE]

I actually thought that the strategic decision to screen and re-screen until they got the match-up they wanted, which was usually the big on Lebron or Curry on Kyrie - was brilliant. It wore Curry down and also demoralized him, and Lebron was able to usually exploit his match-up, especially when it was Festus in Game 7. It was certainly an contrast to the Warriors usual ball movement, but look at the shots GSW took down the stretch - also all iso-ball 1-on-1s. In the last 5 minutes, everyone missed on both side, save for Kyrie's dagger.

Yup, this is on point. Both teams missed a ton of shots down the stretch, but Golden State for some reason just abandoned their awesome ball movement and pace & space style offense and instead opted for wild 3 point attempts. In my opinion, the moment got too big for them. They saw LeBron and Kyrie killing them with hero ball and tried to do the same, instead of doing what worked for them all year. Probably the biggest mistake they made was that they didn't let Draymond, by far their best player in the game, do his thing in the 4th quarter. He barely got any touches in crunch time.

[moonpie23]

they didn't let Draymond, by far their best player in the game, FOR THE WARRIORS do his thing in the 4th quarter. He barely got any touches in crunch time.


there you go......fixed it for you...

[kAzE]

there you go...fixed it for you...

um . . I said "their" best player . . . "they" being the Warriors . . .

[CajunDevil]

I disagree with those that call the final quarter bad basketball... it was 4th Quarter, Game 7 of the NBA Finals basketball. The most pressure-packed basketball at the highest level in what was one of the most consequential games in the history of the league. On the line was GSW's possible claim as greatest team ever vs. Cavs - One for the Land, come back from 3-1, and LeBron's legacy. The defense was superb on both ends... both teams were beyond fatigued. Although the shooting percentage down the stretch was atrocious, the moment made this beautiful basketball. All of the storylines came down to these last five minutes. They showed why you need great individual players in this league. When things breakdown - as they did for both teams - you must have that guy who can win it. In that moment, the dubs didn't have that guy and the Cavs had two. LeBron's block, the greatest basketball play in history, then Kyrie's dagger.

[subzero02]

FWIW, there were some really great defensive stands at the end of the game by Cleveland. Also I believe Kyrie's 3 was the only bucket Cleveland had in the last four minutes so they could have hit a couple more shots as well.

In the final 4 minutes, Iggy clearly fouled LeBron on what would've been a certain dunk or layup but nothing was called.

[Billy Dat]

By the way, this is a very minor point, and I don't know why it surprised me at all, but I did find it somewhat annoying that Maverick Carter was on the court, in the middle of the celebration scrum, as soon as the horn sounded. I guess his position as a member of the Cavs front office is essentially verified. I guess he's family, it just felt inappropriate.

[kAzE]

In the final 4 minuted, Iggy clearly fouled LeBron on what would've been a certain dunk or layup but nothing was called.

It wasn't a "clear" foul in real time. Zoomed in, in slow motion, and in high definition, sure. And keep in mind in many cases, the shooter's hand can be considered part of the ball when it comes to shot blocking. He got LeBron on the wrist, so it was a foul, but try making that foul call to decide game 7 of the finals. I've been very vocal about the refs being terrible for most of these playoffs, but I don't fault the refs at all for that one.

[moonpie23]

um . . I said "their" best player . . . "they" being the Warriors . . .

correctamundo........my oversight....

[Duke76]

You mean this block?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNGS3BSm0bk

Or this game?

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2015/04/05/kentucky_loses_photos_of_shocked_sad_kentucky_play ers_fans_and_john_calipari.html

yep and one other thing///Kyrie's shot was taken basically the same place on the court that Austin Rivers dropped in on UNC.....

[Duke76]

I disagree with those that call the final quarter bad basketball... it was 4th Quarter, Game 7 of the NBA Finals basketball. The most pressure-packed basketball at the highest level in what was one of the most consequential games in the history of the league. On the line was GSW's possible claim as greatest team ever vs. Cavs - One for the Land, come back from 3-1, and LeBron's legacy. The defense was superb on both ends... both teams were beyond fatigued. Although the shooting percentage down the stretch was atrocious, the moment made this beautiful basketball. All of the storylines came down to these last five minutes. They showed why you need great individual players in this league. When things breakdown - as they did for both teams - you must have that guy who can win it. In that moment, the dubs didn't have that guy and the Cavs had two. LeBron's block, the greatest basketball play in history, then Kyrie's dagger.

the bottom line is their legs were tired, gone, finished,over and Buck had the gumption to size up Curry and take the shot....how many dudes would look to give it up......life lesson...you gotta take the shot in life...live with the consequences yea or nay.....proud of Kyrie! end of story! he was the stronger guard that night and throughout the series..end of story

[FerryFor50]

Hey, look!

Draymond strikes again...

http://warriors.247sports.com/Bolt/Draymond-Green-appears-to-kick-Kyrie-Irving-at-the-end-of-Game-7-45914289

[devildeac]

Hey, look!

Draymond strikes again...

http://warriors.247sports.com/Bolt/Draymond-Green-appears-to-kick-Kyrie-Irving-at-the-end-of-Game-7-45914289

Whoa, you sure that's not a Grayson Allen video?

:rolleyes:

[duke4ever19]

Hey, look!

Draymond strikes again...

http://warriors.247sports.com/Bolt/Draymond-Green-appears-to-kick-Kyrie-Irving-at-the-end-of-Game-7-45914289

That Draymond Green is something else, isn't he?

I have always had a soft spot for those gritty, dirty players, but something in me can't accept Draymond. I love me some Rodman, Stockton (subtle and efficient dirty player), Garnett, Sprewell etc. but Draymond has some major work to do to get in my good graces.

[BlueDevilBrowns]

That Draymond Green is something else, isn't he?

I have always had a soft spot for those gritty, dirty players, but something in me can't accept Draymond. I love me some Rodman, Stockton (subtle and efficient dirty player), Garnett, Sprewell etc. but Draymond has some major work to do to get in my good graces.

I think if Green just "owned" the dirty play, it'd make it more palpable, at least to me.

But the whole "pee on your leg and tell you it's raining" act he continues to do is annoying.

[FerryFor50]

I think if Green just "owned" the dirty play, it'd make it more palpable, at least to me.

But the whole "pee on your leg and tell you it's raining" act he continues to do is annoying.

My issue is that his dirty play "finishing move" is always the most cowardly act - hitting a guy in the nethers.

If he were a pro wrestler, his name would be Nutso the Clown

[flyingdutchdevil]

I am probably the least sympathetic towards Green on this board (okay, I really don't like him. Absolutely a top 3 unlikable player for me in the NBA) and feel the suspension was deserved and he should be labelled a "dirty player".

But I don't think his kick to Kyrie has malicious or intentional. Right before the play, Draymond hard-fouls a train-called-Lebron and both players get flattened. Lebron lands on his wrist and tummy; Draymond on his back. Because of the force of the train, Draymond landing on his back forces his leg to go up. And it was likely exacerbated by Draymond's poor attempt to get an offensive call called on Lebron. I think Kyrie was just in the wrong place at the wrong time (okay, anywhere within 2 feet of Draymond is the wrong place).

On a slightly separate note, is Kyrie one of the least non-controversial stars in the NBA? Players won't pick on him, he doesn't get in fights, he rarely gets targeted (outside of offense targeting his defense), and doesn't get technicals.

[kAzE]

On a slightly separate note, is Kyrie one of the least non-controversial stars in the NBA? Players won't pick on him, he doesn't get in fights, he rarely gets targeted (outside of offense targeting his defense), and doesn't get technicals.

He doesn't complain that much, he keeps his emotions under control, he doesn't flop, he doesn't taunt people, he doesn't talk bad about anyone, he doesn't showboat, and he doesn't do anything dirty. You keep your head down, play the game the way it's meant to be played, and you can get by in this league.

[FerryFor50]

I am probably the least sympathetic towards Green on this board (okay, I really don't like him. Absolutely a top 3 unlikable player for me in the NBA) and feel the suspension was deserved and he should be labelled a "dirty player".

But I don't think his kick to Kyrie has malicious or intentional. Right before the play, Draymond hard-fouls a train-called-Lebron and both players get flattened. Lebron lands on his wrist and tummy; Draymond on his back. Because of the force of the train, Draymond landing on his back forces his leg to go up. And it was likely exacerbated by Draymond's poor attempt to get an offensive call called on Lebron. I think Kyrie was just in the wrong place at the wrong time (okay, anywhere within 2 feet of Draymond is the wrong place).

On a slightly separate note, is Kyrie one of the least non-controversial stars in the NBA? Players won't pick on him, he doesn't get in fights, he rarely gets targeted (outside of offense targeting his defense), and doesn't get technicals.

Isolated from his other incidents? Sure. Unintentional.

But combined with the others? Of which, the excuse has pretty consistently been "kicking his leg out to sell contact"? Yea, not buying it.

[FerryFor50]

He doesn't complain that much, he keeps his emotions under control, he doesn't flop, he doesn't taunt people, he doesn't talk bad about anyone, he doesn't showboat, and he doesn't do anything dirty. You keep your head down, play the game the way it's meant to be played, and you can get by in this league.

I've seen Kyrie do his fair share of complaining to refs. But overall, he just generally has a smile on his face and looks like he's having fun.

[kAzE]

I've seen Kyrie do his fair share of complaining to refs. But overall, he just generally has a smile on his face and looks like he's having fun.

I think everyone complains in games. It's pretty standard gamesmanship, especially for a small guard who goes to the rim as much as Kyrie. I was thinking more in post game press conferences and interviews. Kyrie's just a likable person. And I think his Uncle Drew videos have been a hit with just about everyone, including his NBA colleagues.

[Newton_14]

I was pulling hard for Cleveland as I alluded to earlier upstream, watching the celebration at the airport yesterday was really cool, as was watching the crowds fill up the street today in anticipation of the parade... genuine appreciation of an accomplishment from a non-spoiled fanbase and group of people is a joy to watch actually and after Orlando we needed a feel good story for a city... so this was really great to watch.....

yeah there is a but coming, sorry...

BUT, I had to turn it off just now. While the guys without shirts (including Kyrie during the parade), looked very tacky to me, the language from Lebron was so over the top I could not take it any longer and cut it off. I'm sorry, flame me if you disagree/wish, but there are thousands of kids present wearing the #23 Jersey, and no matter where your moral compass or thoughts on language land, for me, the numerous MF's, Poops, Arses, dropped for no earthly reason put a huge damper on the whole event for me, and for my die hard Cleveland born and raised office mate as well. He too, turned it off.

I am totally baffled at why Lebron thought it would be cool to drop the numerous curse words with all those kids present and milions more or whatever watching on TV. For me, not a good look at all. And I am the furthest thing from a Lebron Hater there is. (And for the record, I don't hate Curry either) No one outside of HWSNBN'd on either team received any hate from me. I enjoyed the heck out of the series, Cleveland winning, and Kyrie hitting the winning shot. Loved it.


So again, flame away... and I guess Get Off My Lawn.... :)

[kAzE]

BUT, I had to turn it off just now. While the guys without shirts (including Kyrie during the parade), looked very tacky to me, the language from Lebron was so over the top I could not take it any longer and cut it off. I'm sorry, flame me if you disagree/wish, but there are thousands of kids present wearing the #23 Jersey, and no matter where your moral compass or thoughts on language land, for me, the numerous MF's, Poops, Arses, dropped for no earthly reason put a huge damper on the whole event for me, and for my die hard Cleveland born and raised office mate as well. He too, turned it off.

I am totally baffled at why Lebron thought it would be cool to drop the numerous curse words with all those kids present and milions more or whatever watching on TV. For me, not a good look at all. And I am the furthest thing from a Lebron Hater there is. (And for the record, I don't hate Curry either) No one outside of HWSNBN'd on either team received any hate from me. I enjoyed the heck out of the series, Cleveland winning, and Kyrie hitting the winning shot. Loved it.

Wow . . . I haven't been watching the celebration at all, but that is a head scratcher for sure.

[MartyClark]

I was pulling hard for Cleveland as I alluded to earlier upstream, watching the celebration at the airport yesterday was really cool, as was watching the crowds fill up the street today in anticipation of the parade... genuine appreciation of an accomplishment from a non-spoiled fanbase and group of people is a joy to watch actually and after Orlando we needed a feel good story for a city... so this was really great to watch....

yeah there is a but coming, sorry...

BUT, I had to turn it off just now. While the guys without shirts (including Kyrie during the parade), looked very tacky to me, the language from Lebron was so over the top I could not take it any longer and cut it off. I'm sorry, flame me if you disagree/wish, but there are thousands of kids present wearing the #23 Jersey, and no matter where your moral compass or thoughts on language land, for me, the numerous MF's, Poops, Arses, dropped for no earthly reason put a huge damper on the whole event for me, and for my die hard Cleveland born and raised office mate as well. He too, turned it off.

I am totally baffled at why Lebron thought it would be cool to drop the numerous curse words with all those kids present and milions more or whatever watching on TV. For me, not a good look at all. And I am the furthest thing from a Lebron Hater there is. (And for the record, I don't hate Curry either) No one outside of HWSNBN'd on either team received any hate from me. I enjoyed the heck out of the series, Cleveland winning, and Kyrie hitting the winning shot. Loved it.


So again, flame away... and I guess Get Off My Lawn... :)

Didn't see it but I agree with you. Sometimes the Get Off My Lawn guys are right.

[doctorhook]

Kyrie with the only fg in the last 4 min 20 s of the game. Clutch.

[kAzE]

Here's the full video of the speech (as previously stated, lots of profanity, NSFW): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWAzcP1yU7I

The part where he talks about Richard Jefferson is kind of awkward, he says something to effect of "When we got you, I finally got someone I could trust." Ouch . . . what about your other teammates?

Here's Kyrie's much shorter, much less profanity laced speech: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crEURm-zkzw

[BlueDevilBrowns]

Here's the full video of the speech (as previously stated, lots of profanity, NSFW): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWAzcP1yU7I

The part where he talks about Richard Jefferson is kind of awkward, he says something to effect of "When we got you, I finally got someone I could trust." Ouch . . . what about your other teammates?

Here's Kyrie's much shorter, much less profanity laced speech: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crEURm-zkzw

I agree Lebron's speech was awkward at best and dissapointing at worst.

My complete guess is because the parade was delayed several hours due to the crowd, the squad may have had a little too much champagne waiting for things to get started.

Lebron may regret some of the word usage in his speech later.

[CDu]

I agree Lebron's speech was awkward at best and dissapointing at worst.

My complete guess is because the parade was delayed several hours due to the crowd, the squad may have had a little too much champagne waiting for things to get started.

Lebron may regret some of the word usage in his speech later.

It is especially a bad look for a guy who so regularly goes to the "I am a father with a family" argument. Strange for sure. Then again, James isn't where he is for his eloquence, he is a basketball player. Could definitely do without the language at such a public, family/community-focused celebration.

[Des Esseintes]

I don't know. I listened to the speech. Nothing stood out to me as particularly blue. It's a victory parade in a city that hasn't seen a championship in over half a century. A little celebratory profanity feels about right. Remember Chase Utley'student "WORLD CHAMPIONS! WORLD F---ING CHAMPIONS!"? Of course you don't. Because it happens every time a team wins, and after a championship we tend to let these adult athletes a small measure of freedom from the usual Ken doll paradigm. They can go back to the absurd pretense of being Boy Scouts tomorrow.

[Edouble]

I listened to the whole speech and, as a big fan of LeBron, was prepared to be disappointed and let down.

I thought that the speech was pretty tame. I guess I was expecting some kind of a rant with a string of "MFers" laced together in angry boasting, but the curse words were really just sprinkled in here and there throughout 15 minutes of talking.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

I listened to the whole speech and, as a big fan of LeBron, was prepared to be disappointed and let down.

I thought that the speech was pretty tame. I guess I was expecting some kind of a rant with a string of "MFers" laced together in angry boasting, but the curse words were really just sprinkled in here and there over 15 minutes of talking.

Dude, LBJ just completed his literal life goal. If he wants to go off script and show real emotion that wasn't written by Nike, I give him some latitude.

[Ichabod Drain]

I don't know. I listened to the speech. Nothing stood out to me as particularly blue. It's a victory parade in a city that hasn't seen a championship in over half a century. A little celebratory profanity feels about right. Remember Chase Utley'student "WORLD CHAMPIONS! WORLD F---ING CHAMPIONS!"? Of course you don't. Because it happens every time a team wins, and after a championship we tend to let these adult athletes a small measure of freedom from the usual Ken doll paradigm. They can go back to the absurd pretense of being Boy Scouts tomorrow.

Yea, I don't really remember much about any single victory parade in particular. What I do remember is that everyone of them has some awkward moments and there's always a video or audio clip of something which might normally be regrettable but they just won a championship so no one cares.

Its not like anything tangible (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lY2aNHgR0lA) was lost.

[CajunDevil]

Dude, LBJ just completed his literal life goal. If he wants to go off script and show real emotion that wasn't written by Nike, I give him some latitude.

Totally agree. Unfortunately, too many critics, including many on this board, simply want him to be their version of perfect. Give the man a break...

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Totally agree. Unfortunately, too many critics, including many on this board, simply want him to be their version of perfect. Give the man a break...

I think this board reflects the bigger lens of the media that looks for criticism in every opportunity. Almost impossible to meet those expectations.

As I say, everything he does seems so calaculated - I enjoyed a few moments of ad lib.

[Duke76]

Totally agree. Unfortunately, too many critics, including many on this board, simply want him to be their version of perfect. Give the man a break...

he didn't go to Duke, doesn't represent us, Kyrie did and does and I am so proud of how he carries himself and represents us and his school

[flyingdutchdevil]

I agree Lebron's speech was awkward at best and dissapointing at worst.

My complete guess is because the parade was delayed several hours due to the crowd, the squad may have had a little too much champagne waiting for things to get started.

Lebron may regret some of the word usage in his speech later.

How was it awkward or disappointing? Yeah, he dropped some poop and f-bomb references, but is that it? I liked how he thanked everyone.

And I think Mountain Duke said it best: he just accomplished his life goal. A few swear words here and there don't hurt anyone.

[Spanarkel]

. LeBron's block, the greatest basketball play in history, then Kyrie's dagger.

Agree that it was a fantastic block, but check out David Thompson's blocks of Bill Walton(and Keith, later Jamaal, Wilkes) in the 1974 NCAA Semi-Final in Greensboro. Walton/Wilkes rank among the NBA's 50 Greatest.

[CajunDevil]

Agree that it was a fantastic block, but check out David Thompson's blocks of Bill Walton(and Keith, later Jamaal, Wilkes) in the 1974 NCAA Semi-Final in Greensboro. Walton/Wilkes rank among the NBA's 50 Greatest.

Thanks for pointing out this block. Thompson's block was exceptional, but not close to the same level as LeBron's, imho. 1. One BIG difference is the moment. Game 7 of the NBA Finals with less than 2 minutes left is the most pressurized moment in basketball at the highest level. 2. The sheer desire and athletic ability LBJ displayed to reach a speed of 20.1 miles an hour that culminated in a window of 0.2 of a second to block Iggy's layup was breathtaking. Thompson's block was impressive, but not take-your-breath-away impressive.

[Edouble]

Dude, LBJ just completed his literal life goal. If he wants to go off script and show real emotion that wasn't written by Nike, I give him some latitude.

Did you read my post?

Your response is strange to me, as you are pretty much going along with what I said, which was that I thought the speech was fine and not offensive.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Did you read my post?

Your response is strange to me, as you are pretty much going along with what I said, which was that I thought the speech was fine and not offensive.

Oh, I was just replying to the general train of thought, not intending to rebuke your point of view. Yes, we agree.

[Spanarkel]

Thanks for pointing out this block. Thompson's block was exceptional, but not close to the same level as LeBron's, imho. 1. One BIG difference is the moment. Game 7 of the NBA Finals with less than 2 minutes left is the most pressurized moment in basketball at the highest level. 2. The sheer desire and athletic ability LBJ displayed to reach a speed of 20.1 miles an hour that culminated in a window of 0.2 of a second to block Iggy's layup was breathtaking. Thompson's block was impressive, but not take-your-breath-away impressive.

I see your points and agree. Not to belabor, but Thompson at 6'3-4", from a standing start, just erased the 6'11" Walton's jump hoop(and Walton definitely elevates, at that point in his career). The NBA Finals Game 7 stage is bigger as you note, but Thompson and State were battling the NCAA Champs 7 years running, and that block early in the game made a huge statement imo(remember UCLA had beaten NCS handily earlier that season). It's fun to discuss at any rate.

[BlueDevilBrowns]

How was it awkward or disappointing? Yeah, he dropped some poop and f-bomb references, but is that it? I liked how he thanked everyone.

And I think Mountain Duke said it best: he just accomplished his life goal. A few swear words here and there don't hurt anyone.

I never said it hurt anyone. But it can be an awkward with small children, like my 6 year old daughter, listening. If this were at a comedy club or a dinner setting for adults, I would have zero issues.

But it was a public setting with tons of children present.

It was disappointing because it showed a lack of professionalism and forethought.

It's not the end of the world but it's also not his best look, either.

[kAzE]

How was it awkward or disappointing? Yeah, he dropped some poop and f-bomb references, but is that it? I liked how he thanked everyone.

And I think Mountain Duke said it best: he just accomplished his life goal. A few swear words here and there don't hurt anyone.

Life goal or not, there were 1.3 million people at that parade/rally. It was a public setting, and he was representing more than just himself. It was awkward because he subconciously alienated some of his teammates while thanking them. Again the RJ bit: "When we got you, I felt like I finally got someone behind me who I could trust." If I was one of those other guys, I'd be like . . . "wtf?"

He then said like 1 nice thing about Kevin Love and moved on and talked about Sasha Kaun for like 5 minutes . . I didn't even know that guy was on the team . . .

Nothing against LeBron. He can do what he wants in that city, I guess. It was just an awkward and uncomfortable 15 minutes for me, and probably anyone who attended the rally with their small children.

[Edouble]

Life goal or not, there were 1.3 million people at that parade/rally. It was a public setting, and he was representing more than just himself. It was awkward because he subconciously alienated some of his teammates while thanking them. Again the RJ bit: "When we got you, I felt like I finally got someone behind me who I could trust." If I was one of those other guys, I'd be like . . . "wtf?"

He then said like 1 nice thing about Kevin Love and moved on and talked about Sasha Kaun for like 5 minutes . . I didn't even know that guy was on the team . . .

Nothing against LeBron. He can do what he wants in that city, I guess. It was just an awkward and uncomfortable 15 minutes for me, and probably anyone who attended the rally with their small children.

I took this ("someone behind me") to mean someone that could back up his position as a small forward off of the bench. So that would only alienate/offend James Jones? Dahntay Jones was not on the team yet when the Cavs acquired RJ. The Cavs roster is heavy on guards and big men, but not many true wings.

I also thought LeBron might get a little leeway with his cursing on this board for referring to the 2004 Olympic team as a "s**t show". I know I was amused.

[Dukehky]

I took this ("someone behind me") to mean someone that could back up his position as a small forward off of the bench. So that would only alienate/offend James Jones? Dahntay Jones was not on the team yet when the Cavs acquired RJ. The Cavs roster is heavy on guards and big men, but not many true wings.

I also thought LeBron might get a little leeway with his cursing on this board for referring to the 2004 Olympic team as a "s**t show". I know I was amused.

I remember my mom saying that I could say the "s" word as a kid only when I was in Cameron chanting with the crowd (I didn't obey). Also, I remember asking why the Bulls were all smoking cigars because I thought as a kid that smoking was the worst thing in the world (not far off), and she said that if I ever won an NBA title, that it would be okay.

This is easy to explain away as a parent, I think. "You can speak with that kind of language if you win an NBA title and are one of the best players of all time." I don't think this hurts him at all and I wasn't offended or rubbed the wrong way. I actually thought that it was refreshing to hear some honest talk out of a guy that is normally so guarded and so "brand" conscious. But then again, I'm in my late 20s and don't have any impressionable youngsters. Overall, I think it will be forgotten pretty quickly seeing as how he just pulled off one of the greatest title wins of all time.

[moonpie23]

high speed camera shows secret warriors' reason for loss (https://www.facebook.com/BasketballAboveAll/videos/1160015244057164/?pnref=story#)

[Billy Dat]

Anyone see this flap over Kyrie partying on a yacht with a seemingly all-white group of females?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/kyrie-irving-denies-no-black-girls-allowed-yacht-party-claims_us_57752ff7e4b0bd4b0b13b4fe

It's always interesting/enlightening to get perspective on issues you aren't sensitive to as a member of a different race (note - not trying to turn this into a public policy debate).

As to the debate over Lebron's post parade profanity-laced speech, I thought it was fine, but I am not as sensitive to this stuff even though I am a father with kids of an impressionable age. What I thought was offensive was that it was a lame mimic of Durant's moving MVP speech where he thanked each teammate in a true and heartfelt personalized way. Lebron's was not neatly as smooth, it reminded me a bit of when Mr. Burns tries to walk the floor of the nuclear power plant on "The Simpsons" in an attempt to connect with the employees whom he barely knows, "Hey Mr. Brown Shoes - how's that local sports team?!?"

[kAzE]

Anyone see this flap over Kyrie partying on a yacht with a seemingly all-white group of females?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/kyrie-irving-denies-no-black-girls-allowed-yacht-party-claims_us_57752ff7e4b0bd4b0b13b4fe

It's always interesting/enlightening to get perspective on issues you aren't sensitive to as a member of a different race (note - not trying to turn this into a public policy debate).

I don't really understand what the fuss is about. It's a private party. Even if it's true, who Kyrie chooses to invite or not invite is his prerogative. Maybe he is attracted to white girls? Why do people care about this?

If a gay man had a yacht party and only invited gay people, would anybody care? Why is there a double standard for black athletes and who they choose to spend their time with? This is what happens when social media gets out of hand . . .

[Edouble]

I don't really understand what the fuss is about. It's a private party. Even if it's true, who Kyrie chooses to invite or not invite is his prerogative.

As someone who has lived in Atlanta most of his life (me), I can tell you that this is an issue that has been around the African-American community for quite some time.

[kAzE]

As someone who has lived in Atlanta most of his life (me), I can tell you that this is an issue that has been around the African-American community for quite some time.

I just don't understand why it's an issue. I'm not insinuating that Kyrie even did the things he's being accused of, but regardless, people can't change the type of people they are sexually attracted to. If you can't do anything about it, then why bother making a big deal out of it? People have the right to have preferences. Deal with it.

I think I'm going to stop posting on this subject in case I offend anyone. That's just my personal view on it.