Stephen Curry scored 37 points, NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant added 20 and a triple-double and the Warriors stamped themselves a dynasty after winning their second straight title and third in four years on Friday night. A 108-85 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers complete a 4-0 sweep and perhaps will drive LeBron James from his home again to chase championships.
Overcoming obstacles all season long, the Warriors were not going to be denied and won the fourth straight finals match-up against Cleveland with ease.
‘This is so hard to do and doing it three out of four years is incredible,’ guard Klay Thompson said.
Golden State Warriors showed their overwhelming dominance to claim a whitewash series win over the Cleveland Cavaliers
Golden State’s star man Stephen Curry holds the Larry O’Brien trophy aloft having hit 37 points in a devastating game four
The Warriors are creating a golden dynasty in NBA as they celebrate successive titles and their third in the last four years
Ecstatic Warriors’ fans look to get a piece of Curry as he departs the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland like a hero
It did not take long for Warriors’ players to rub in their win in front of a Cleveland home crowd as they show history is made
Curry leads the celebrations in the dressing room after the win as he enjoys a cigar in front of the many photographers
With protective goggles on, the champagne flowed as the players posed for media photographers in ‘champions’ shirts
It was the first sweep in the NBA Finals since 2007, when James was dismissed by a powerful San Antonio team in his first one. His eighth straight appearance didn’t go well either, and now there’s uncertainty where the superstar will play next.
James, who said he broke his right hand in frustration following Game 1, finished with 23 points and spent the final minutes on the bench, contemplating what went wrong and maybe his next move.
Following the game, he sat quietly in his corner locker with a towel draped over his head. He arrived at his post-game news conference with a large brace on his right hand from a ‘self-inflicted’ injury.
The fourth match-up between the Warriors and Cavs featured a drama-filled and controversial Game 1. But from there on, Durant, Curry, Thompson, Draymond Green and the rest of this California crew showed why they’re the game’s gold standard.
A picture that said a thousand words as LeBron, alone in shot, was left to contemplate his next move as he seeks more titles
It was only the second time in his career that he was on the end of a whitewash – his last came against the San Antonio Spurs
Warriors fans embraced LeBron’s anguish as one fan had a giant LeBron head printed where he is crying after a defeat
LeBron took to his post match conference with a heavily-strapped right hand having revealed a ‘self-inflicted’ injury in Game 1
And they may stay that way.
‘Can’t get enough of this feeling so we’re going to celebrate it together,’ Curry said.
Not wanting to give the Cavs or their fans any hope despite the fact that no team has ever overcome a 3-0 deficit in the NBA playoffs, the Warriors built a nine-point halftime lead when Curry ignored a closeout by James and dropped a 3-pointer.
Then the league’s best team tightened the screws on Cleveland in the third quarter, outscoring the Cavs 25-13 and prompting Golden State fans to begin those drawn-out ‘War-eee-orrss’ chants that provide a perfect musical accompaniment to their 3-point barrages.
By the start of the fourth quarter, the only question was whether Curry would win his first NBA Finals MVP or if it would go to Durant for the second year in a row.
Curry and Durant stole the headlines across the series with both expected to remain with the Warriors for a title defence
MVP Durant joined the Warriors after he was on the losing side against them and he is ready to sign a fresh deal to stay
His points haul and a triple-double capped off a fine series against Cleveland as he breezes past J.R. Smith to finish a dunk
There was jubilation throughout as the Warriors, who negotiated injuries over the season, eased home in Cleveland’s home
There was not a spare seat in the house as fans came to witness what many expected to be the final match in the series
And again, it was Durant, who added 12 rebounds and 10 assists – more satisfaction and validation for a player who couldn’t beat the Warriors so he joined them.
After surviving a rougher-than-usual regular season and beating top-seeded Houston in Game 7 on the road in the Western Conference finals, the Warriors withstood a 51-point masterpiece by James in Game 1 and joined an elite group of teams to win multiple championships in a four-year span.
Only Bill Russell’s Boston Celtics, the ‘Showtime’ Lakers and the Los Angeles squad led by Kobe and Shaq, and Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls have been as dominant in such a short period of time.
The Dub Dynasty.
The path to this title was more precarious than the first two for coach Steve Kerr and the Warriors, who overcame injuries, expectations, a built-to-dethrone-them Rockets team and the brilliance of James, who scored 51 points in the series opener and carried a Cavs team from the beginning of their rollercoaster season until the end.
It may have been the final game in Cleveland for the 33-year-old, who is expected to opt out of his $35.6 million contract for 2019 next month and become a free agent.
LeBron spoke about Cleveland building a team that is good enough to compete for titles and he may have played his last game
LeBron is expected to opt out of his £30million contract this summer in order to become a free agent which will cause a stir
Even Cleveland fans poked fun at the series-defining incident in Game 1 that saw J.R. Smith get confused over the score
Mimicking the mural of LeBron outside the arena, Cleveland will have a major rebuilding job on their hands in their star leaves
James was pulled from the game with 4:03 left, and he slapped hands with the Warriors before heading to the bench. He averaged 34 points, 8.5 rebounds and 10 assists in the series, but as has been the case in the past, he didn’t have enough help.
Another summer of LeBron is officially underway and there are already teams stretching from Philadelphia to Los Angeles hoping to land the three-time champion, who may have to go elsewhere to put together a cast strong enough – and as James made clear this week, smart enough – to bring down the Warriors.
Right now, Golden State is on another tier and with Durant expected to re-sign with them in weeks and Curry, Thompson, Green and the rest still young and hungry, their reign could last much longer.
Heading into the playoffs, the Warriors appeared vulnerable. There were lingering questions about Curry’s sprained left knee that sidelined him for almost six weeks and kept him out of a first-round series against San Antonio.
It was a sea of blue and yellow at the end of the night as Warriors fans celebrated late into the night in Cleveland, Ohio
With stars like Curry and Draymond Green hungry for further success, the future looks incredibly bright for the Warriors
The Oakland side want more and more titles so they can go down as one of the most dominant teams in NBA history
Kerr was forced to mix and match lineups, and it became obvious the Warriors weren’t going to go 16-1 and storm their way to a title like they did in 2017, when their only post-season loss came in Game 4 after the Cavs made 24 3-pointers.
The Warriors began defence of their title as a No 2 seed and their season was in serious jeopardy when they fell behind 3-2 to presumptive MVP James Harden and the Rockets. But Golden State, catching a break when Houston star guard Chris Paul was forced to sit out with a hamstring injury, showed a champion’s poise by winning two straight.
That set up another reunion with James and the Cavs.
Maybe the last.