CAVS.SPACE

1) Beware "The Hamptons 5" lineup (Steph/Klay/KD/Draymond/Iguodala). 2) The Cavs' keeping a faster pace forced the Warriors to play their bench players and gave the Cavs an advantage throughout most of Game 3.  3) LeBron James posted a +7 +/- in Game 3. The Cavs were -12 with him out of the game. 4) The defense and passing have improved, but the Cavs' rebounding remains subpar. 5) Enter the X-factor, Derrick Williams. 6) No one is invincible. 7) "No champagne here at the Q." -Campy Russell

To make a long story short: Kevin Durant has altered the defensive and offensive makeup of the Golden State Warriors.  If there is a play that sums up the Cavs' struggles in the first two games, it is this one  (tweet courtesy of NBA.com) : Durant rejection on one end. Durant 3-pointer on the other. #NBAFinals #DubNation pic.twitter.com/4Ti4PqfuD7 — NBA.com (@NBAcom) June 5, 2017 In this play, Kyrie Irving took Klay Thompson off the dribble, getting him to bump into Zaza Pachulia and fall over. Last year, this would have meant an open jumpshot for Kyrie. However, Durant flew in with the blind side block and forced the turnover. Afterwards, Steph Curry retrieved the ball and passed it to Durant. Recognizing defensive mismatches, Durant immediately dribbled up to the right elbow of the three-point arc. Tristan Thompson got confused because normally he needs to drop down low and cover the post in transition, but on this particular play he was the only player in

1) Better defense. To get things back under control in Game 1, the Cavaliers absolutely need to play better defense on Kevin Durant. Durant is a legend in the making, but the Cavs are certainly capable of doing a better job guarding him. In his postgame comments to Doris Burke, Durant included: "[...] And I might not be able to get those shots next game, but if I do, [...] I've got to continue to knock them down [...]." Courtesy of the NBA, below is a video of some of Durant's highlights from Game 1. I have added notes about each play. Of the 16 featured plays, the Cavs played the appropriate defense once and had no options in 2 others; they messed up on the other 13 plays. 1. 0:12 - Durant driving layup: soft double-team; LeBron and Love flatfooted 2. 0:17 - Durant alley-oop from Green: LeBron overplayed Durant's cut towards a fake screen 3. 0:25 - Durant drive and assist to Pachulia off a pick-and-roll: double-team; LeBron flatfooted, Love overpl

Picture: Scoreboard before Game 2 of the first-round series between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Indiana Pacers. Cleveland Cavaliers Star players who are core players:  F/G LeBron James, G Kyrie Irving, F/C Kevin Love Role players who are core players:  C/F Tristan Thompson, G/F J.R. Smith, G Deron Williams,  G/F Iman Shumpert,  F/G Richard Jefferson Role players who are situational players:  F/G Kyle Korver, F/G Derrick Williams , F/C Channing Frye, G/F Dahntay Jones  Bench players who are secondary backups:  F/G James Jones, G Kay Felder *Injured:  C Edy Tavares > Cavs' X-factor: Derrick Williams Golden State Warriors Star players who are core players: G Stephen Curry, F Kevin Durant, G Klay Thompson, F/C Draymond Green Role players who are core players: F/G Andre Iguodala, G Shaun Livingston,  C Zaza Pachulia,  F David West, C JaVale McGee  Role players who are situational players:  F/G Matt Barnes,  G Patrick McCaw, G Ian Clark Bench players who are seco