Cavs-Warriors NBA finale?

WITH the way the first two games of the NBA conference finals have gone, the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers have found contrasting ways of gaining the early lead in their respective seven-game series.

In the West and as expected, the Warriors have relied on home cooking by firing their favorite three-point shots and thrilling their boisterous and hungry home crowd at Oracle Arena. It’s been 40 years since the San Francisco Warriors with Rick Barry won the NBA title for the Bay Area team. Fans are looking to add another basketball title to their already illustrious collection of baseball and football crowns.

Led by the sweet-shooting reigning MVP Stephen Curry, the Warriors have dictated the flow of the series against the Houston Rockets. Golden State will establish several big leads, sufficient as cushions as the Rockets have found themselves spending an enormous amount of energy playing catch-up. In the first two games, the Warriors have held on to their leads by making big defensive plays like that double-team on James Harden, who was trying to win Game 2 with a buzzer-beater.

It may be too early to count out the resilient Rockets, who found a way to turn around what looked like a lost series against the Los Angeles Clippers.  Coach Kevin McHale, the former Boston Celtics postman with a thousand up-fakes and pivot moves, has never lost faith in his team and has imparted his championship expertise.

In the East, the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers are simply outhustling the limping and hurting Atlanta Hawks. James is the big brother, senior-citizen ringleader of a young band of Cavaliers who are still learning how to perform in the playoffs. He has been there before and knows what frame of mind is necessary for victory.

The playoff mental warfare is where the Hawks are being beaten. James is bulldozing his way through token defenses, feeding his open teammates and voice operating his team. James was caught yelling “Too easy!” when he drove for an uncontested layup and barking, “I’ve got your back!” to a young teammate, obviously asserting himself in a fray of younger players.

Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer emphasized that they have to “stay in front” of their defensive assignments in the hope of doing a better job on the road in the series. But it’s clear that it’s easier said than done since James, playing like a point forward, is a threat anyway you cut it: He can drive, pass or crank up a long trey.

Unlike the Rockets, who have managed to claw back into the first two games, the Hawks are already a tired and hurting team, with injuries to key players like DeMarre Caroll, Al Horford and three-point gunner Kyle Korver, who got his leg trampled on in a loose-ball battle in Game 2.  They now find themselves in a playoffs where they have to dig in deep to be able to keep in step with the Cavaliers.

Again, the NBA playoffs have revealed the basic difference between regular-season play and postseason warfare: The game is no longer about Xs and Os but more of what’s inside the players’ minds and hearts. This is also the time when it’s easier to understand what basketball leadership is all about, as shown by Curry and James.

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