Two games in to the finals, and the Golden State Warriors are two victories and 48 points ahead of the Cleveland Cavaliers. The dominance that the GSW are exhibiting is literally historic – the biggest advantage in two games achieved before this was six points shy of their truly exuberant record. So, does this mean that the Cavs are doomed already?
Well, it may not be as simple as that. Even though if we were to judge the fate of the Cavaliers by the first two games, there is still a chance that they will turn up their game – after all, GSW won both fixtures at home. The TonyBet bookies, however, wouldn’t bet on the Cavs: the odds for their triumph are 7.00 against just the 1.12 that the Warriors got.
On the other hand, these two upcoming matches in Cleveland may very well shake up this competition a little bit and give it a taste of intrigue it has been lacking so direly. Golden State Warriors were better at home – they have only lost two games in Oracle Arena as opposed to seven on the road. Obviously, that’s still some very impressive stats – but beating them somewhere away from Oakland is easier, it seems.
Still, it is very telling that GSW have started with a 2:0 series even without as much contribution as usual from their leading men. Steve Kerr has taught his men well – and it did show, for example, in the first game, where neither Stephen Curry nor Klay Thompson didn’t play as well as they normally do – and the team still got out with a 104:89. Even in the following game it was only Draymond Green who managed to score more points than his usual average – and GSW still won 110:77.
The Cavs aren’t lacking the talent – even though they may not be able to continue counting on Kevin Love who will potentially have to skip a game or a few – LeBron James isn’t to be discounted just yet, and if Kyrie Irvings will play as well as he did in the first game, all hope is not lost yet. Add the fact that the Cavs too play better at home – and here’s your recipe for a potential win right here. However, it would be a bit naïve to forget that GSW did win seven games straight against their upcoming opponents and that they do manage to win even without fully relying on their leaders.
Could this end in a triumphant, but ultimately predictable 4:0 Golden State Warriors’ series win? That really isn’t out of the question, but then again the Cavs could still potentially turn the tables around (hey, even Curry didn’t win the three-point contest in All Stars this year, although it seemed like a no brainer). Even if they don’t manage to win the whole League, they could put up a good fight – and make it all that more fun to watch for us all.