Through two games, these NBA Finals have not offered us a respite from the rampant blowouts that have plagued these 2017 NBA playoffs. Instead, they have offered a crushing reminder of how wide the gap is between the Warriors and the rest of the NBA. Kevin Durant has been sublime, Steph Curry has been almost equally as good, and the Cavaliers have not been able to be competitive for more than two quarters in a game.
I know some fans are thinking that there’s little reason to watch anymore. There’s an inevitability to what we’re watching, and, yes, while Golden State went up 2-0 last year as well and the Cavs came back to win, it’s hard to imagine another miraculous comeback happening. This Warriors team appears to be both a more dangerous team with Kevin Durant playing the way he is and a more motivated team because of that blown 3-1 lead. So, the question is, why are we all still watching?
This isn’t a question for fans of the two teams, but for the casual fan of the NBA without a dog in the fight, there is some question as to whether it’s worth investing another six hours in watching a series that has been competitive for 36 of the 96 minutes so far. I’m here to offer some reasons to keep watching the NBA Finals. It might not be competitive, but I’m sure we can find something to make the rest of this series — whether two games or more — entertaining for everyone.
5. The Cavaliers could come back again, I guess
This is the thing I think is least likely to happen, but, hey, I’d have probably said that last year too. It’s going to take Kyrie Irving stepping his game up tremendously, Kevin Love shooting like he did against the Celtics, LeBron James being able to play 44 minutes a night at a ridiculous level, and role players like J.R. Smith and Kyle Korver to hit threes, but all of those things could actually happen together and the Cavs could make this a series again in Cleveland. It’s hard to find a weakness in this version of Golden State, especially when Durant and Curry are playing this well together, but maybe Cleveland can find its finest form at home.
4. Increasingly disrespectful play by the Warriors
When the Warriors are doing their thing on offense, they can get in this unfathomable rhythm where seemingly everyone on the floor has the hot hand. Hell, we saw Zaza Pachulia make multiple circus shot layups in Game 1. The best part about this is, it breeds an irrational confidence from all five players that they can take and make any shot on the floor. They’ll launch 30-footers in transition, isolate for 15 seconds just to try and dribble their opponent into a circle, and do their best to dunk on people.
The Warriors’ greatness can get almost monotonous, but they do a pretty good job of breaking that up with their own hubris leading them to try ridiculous things — and often times making it work.
3. The inevitable Jeff Van Gundy/Mark Jackson rant about the state of the NBA
If we get to Game 4 with Golden State up 3-0 in the series and the Warriors take a commanding lead, I’m fully prepared for a Van Gundy vs. Mark Jackson back-and-forth for the ages. At some point, one of them is going to question why the other teams even bother playing anymore and will do their best to come up with an idea for the NBA to legislate super teams out of the league. It’s going to happen and might take up an entire quarter of the broadcast. Or, JVG might just stop the game to declare his love for Rihanna again.
2. The Kevin Durant and Steph Curry Show
This goes somewhat along with No. 4, but this goes beyond these two taking (and making) ridiculous shots. We’ve seen superstar teammates work together beautifully — most recently, LeBron and Dwyane Wade come to mind — but we’ve never seen two players with the styles of Curry and Durant play so well together. It took almost the entire season, but these two have reached a state of basketball nirvana when on the court next to each other.
Durant, the smooth, unguardable 7-foot tall monster, and Curry, the tricky dribbling sharp-shooter, relishing the extra space each other has to operate with thanks to the gravity of their superstar teammate who commands attention at all times.
I completely understand the frustrations of fans, media, and other players who don’t like the massive gap between the Warriors and the rest of the league. That’s fine. For the rest of us, this is a chance to watch something special. We’re going to see Durant and Curry together for at least one more year — likely longer — but we might not ever see them playing together at this level again. It’s absolutely something special and something historic and worth appreciating if you can get past the lack of competition.
1. JaVale McGee in the NBA Finals
If you don’t think the Cavs can come back. If you don’t enjoy watching the Warriors clown the opposition. If you don’t like Van Gundy and Jackson. If you don’t like Curry and Durant putting on an exhibition. Then I hope you can find some enjoyment in watching JaVale McGee playing in and likely winning the NBA Finals. McGee has been often criticized in his career for being too goofy or too dumb — even as recently as right before the Finals — but he’s managed to carve out a niche as a useful player on the team that’s being debated as the best of all-time.
McGee is good for one lob each game in which you are reminded of his presence on such a great team and in that moment your heart is warmed.
