2016 NBA Finals Preview: Warriors vs. Cavaliers

Sixth Man/Bench

Andre Iguodala (GSW) vs. Channing Frye (CLE)

The battle of the benches between these two teams is a classic case of recency vs. the larger body of evidence. In the conference finals and the playoffs as a whole, Cleveland’s second unit has been more effective than the Warriors’.

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That being said, when taking into account the level of competition and how much better Golden State’s bench has been over the last two seasons, it’s hard to side with anyone other than the Dubs’ reserves in this series.

The Cavs’ bench has the second-best point differential in the playoffs and posted a +4.8 plus/minus in the conference finals, while the Dubs’ reserves were a -0.5 against the Thunder.

That’s a trend the Warriors will want to see reversed in the Finals, and with home-court advantage against a Cavs bench that probably isn’t as deep as it appears, they’ve got a good shot of doing so.

It starts with Andre Iguodala, last year’s NBA Finals MVP who “limited” LeBron James to 39.8 percent shooting despite his gaudy all-around numbers. He’s also coming off a series where he held Kevin Durant to 42.3 percent shooting and made some key defensive plays late in Game 6 to extend Golden State’s season.

Iggy hasn’t been as prevalent on offense this year compared to last year’s Finals, when he averaged 16.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.0 rebounds per game on 52.1 percent shooting from the field and 40 percent from downtown.

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But his defense is as valuable as it’s ever been, and his ability to play with the starters or come off the bench makes him one of Golden State’s secret weapons. His ability to slow LeBron will be a difference-maker for a Dubs team that has a decided advantage against the Cavs when they go small.

On the other side of the coin, you could choose a few different options. Matthew Dellavedova was a surprising X-factor in last year’s playoff run, and his three-point shooting has vastly improved this season. But Curry has already laid to rest the “Curry Stopper” reputation, and as good as Iman Shumpert has been lately, he’s hardly reliable enough — particularly with his long range shooting — to be considered for this spot.

Instead, we’ll go with Channing Frye, Cleveland’s biggest X-factor off the bench for the Cavs this season. In a midseason trade that’s proving to be nothing short of highway robbery, the Cavaliers added a stretch-5 who’s provided plenty of matchup problems for the opposition now that Tyronn Lue is putting him to good use.

Frye is only averaging 8.6 points per game in the playoffs, but he’s shooting a blistering 62.1 percent from the field and 57.8 percent from three-point range. Opponents simply haven’t had an answer for him as a big man who can hold his own on the defensive end and spread the defense on the other.

The Warriors won’t struggle with that problem as much, especially when they go small and force Frye to defend the perimeter. Based on this, as well as Iguodala’s incredible importance to the Warriors’ small-ball unit, the Dubs have the advantage in this category as well.

Advantage: Golden State Warriors

Next: Coaching Matchup