2018 NBA Finals: Game 1 recap, highlights and rapid reaction

Despite a legendary performance from LeBron James, the Cleveland Cavaliers were unable to steal Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals from the Golden State Warriors.

In perhaps the most lopsided championship matchup in league history, the 2018 NBA Finals actually got off to an extremely entertaining start in Game 1, with the Golden State Warriors eking out a 124-114 victory in overtime.

Led by a playoff career-high 51 points, eight assists and eight rebounds from LeBron James (on 19-of-32 shooting), the Cleveland Cavaliers put up an extraordinary fight on the road. Unfortunately, they squandered too many opportunities to steal the series opener at Oracle Arena, most notably from George Hill and J.R. Smith.

With 4.7 seconds remaining in regulation and the Cavs trailing by one point, Hill was fouled by Klay Thompson on a cut to the basket. With Cleveland in the bonus, he could’ve given the underdogs the lead with limited time on the clock, but was only able to convert the first before missing the second.

As was the theme all night, Smith was there for the offensive rebound, but mistakenly thought his team had the lead, frantically dribbling the ball back out before realizing too late that the score was tied. For all of King James’ Game 1 brilliance, the Cavaliers lost a game in which he topped 50 points.

The Dubs were led by Stephen Curry‘s 29 points, nine assists and six rebounds as the two-time MVP shot 5-for-11 from 3-point range. Klay Thompson chipped in 24 points on 5-of-10 shooting from deep, while Kevin Durant struggled with a 26-9-6 stat line hindered by 8-of-22 shooting from the field and 1-of-7 shooting from downtown.

Draymond Green added 13 points, 11 rebounds, nine assists, five steals and two blocks, while Shaun Livingston had 10 off the bench. Kevin Love finished with 21 points and 14 rebounds, Smith added 10 and Larry Nance Jr. put up nine points and 11 boards off the bench, but it wasn’t enough to stop the Warriors from outscoring Cleveland 17-7 in the extra period.

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Aside from an absurd night from the King, the Cavs were able to keep it close thanks to a 53-38 edge on the boards, including an 19-4 advantage on the offensive glass. The Warriors didn’t do themselves any favors in the fourth quarter either, with the offense resorting to the Durant isos — particularly on post-ups — that have derailed the league’s best offense all postseason.

However, even with the offense stagnating at times, the defending champs were still able to record 31 assists while committing only seven turnovers.

The first quarter got things started on the right note, featuring a battle between the two premier players of the series. Curry immediately nailed a pull-up 3 from the parking lot to get the ball rolling, scoring the Dubs’ first six points.

The two-time MVP also timed a two-on-one fast break against LeBron perfectly, drawing his defender in by faking the pull-up 3 before launching a high-arching pass to KD for the alley-oop. Curry finished the opening period with 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting.

The King, meanwhile, played the entire first quarter, starting the game with 12 points and three assists on a perfect 4-of-4 shooting.

The scariest moment of the opening period came in the form of a lateral leg contusion for Klay Thompson when J.R. Smith slipped trying to making a play on a Warriors pass and took out the Splash Brother at the knees.

Fortunately, the injury wasn’t as serious as it looked, and Thompson was able to return in the second quarter after being re-taped. The Cavs took a 30-29 lead into the second quarter behind LeBron’s solid start and Kevin Love’s early nine points and four rebounds.

The action really picked up in the second quarter, with LeBron continuing to bulldoze his way through an uninspired Warriors defense. James started the game with 16 points on 6-of-6 shooting before missing his first shot of the night.

With the King on a tear, his first rest of the game halfway through the second quarter felt like a potential turning point, but somehow, in the three or so minutes he sat, the Cavs were actually a +2, starting off with a quick 7-0 run to extend the lead to 11 with their best player on the bench.

Larry Nance Jr. was an X-factor in particular, chipping in eight points and seven rebounds in 10 minutes off the bench.

However, the Dubs quickly responded and cut the lead to six by the time he re-entered, despite starting the game 4-for-15 from downtown as a team. As expected, Curry led the charge:

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Even with LeBron’s 24 first half points on 9-of-11 shooting and Draymond Green picking up his third foul right before the break, Steph helped the Dubs get back to even ground heading in the third.

The backbreaker for Cleveland came right before the buzzer, when Curry drilled a 38-foot 3-pointer to tie the game at 56. He entered the break with 18 points on 7-of-12 shooting, while KD chipped in an 11-5-4 line. Love had 12 points and six boards at the half.

With JaVale McGee inserted into the lineup to start the second half, the Warriors’ patented third quarter avalanche was quickly underway.

McGee even locked up LeBron reasonably well after being switched onto him on the perimeter, igniting the Oracle Arena crowd and helping fuel a quick 10-3 burst to turn a tied game into a seven-point lead 2:58 into the third quarter.

Of course, this was soon followed by the “Shaqtin’ A Fool” moment of the game, but regardless, his energy was a huge part of Golden State’s expected surge.

However, the Cavs didn’t let the momentum get too far away from them, responding with a haymaker of their own to tie the game back up at 68, thanks to LeBron’s personal 7-0 run.

They even pulled ahead by three when the King lost consciousness on a 3 he took from San Francisco:

Unfortunately for the Cavs, a combination of good defense, fatigue and LeBron settling from the perimeter led to the NBA’s best player missing five straight looks.

During that time, the Dubs ratcheted up the heat on the offensive end, making unfair shots to take back the lead and extend it to an 84-78 advantage heading into the fourth. LeBron had a tidy 36 points on 13-of-21 shooting at that point, but after Golden State’s 14-5 run to close the period, it was clear he was going to have to dig deep to lead his team back from the brink.

It didn’t take him long to prove he was more than capable of doing so:

Though the Dubs built a seven-point lead, back-to-back 3s from Jeff Green and Kyle Korver cut the advantage to one point, before a LeBron scoop layup a few plays later gave Cleveland the lead.

The two teams went back and forth, with the Cavs capitalizing on second opportunities provided by their massive advantage on the boards, but an unlikely Draymond 3 broke a 94-94 tie and was quickly followed by a Curry 3 to extend the lead to six points with 4:37 to play.

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It felt like the game was slipping away at that point, but yet again, the Cavs responded. A 10-2 run, with seven points coming from LeBron, turned Golden State’s six-point lead into a two-point deficit with just 50.8 seconds left.

While the Dubs’ offense devolved to KD post-up isos and ill-advised pull-up jumpers, the Cavs fed their leading man to stun and silence Oracle’s home fans.

With the Warriors looking to respond, Durant attacked the basket and was whistled for a charge, but upon further review, the refs changed the questionable call to a block, which the rules state they are able to do. KD tied the game at the foul line with 36.4 seconds left.

LeBron responded immediately with a double-clutch layup at the basket over KD and Green, but Curry answered on the other end with a monster 3-point play to give the Dubs a one-point advantage with 23.5 seconds left.

With the Warriors’ defense in disarray and Curry matched up on the King, LeBron found a cutting Hill, who was fouled by Thompson and sent to the line because the Cavs were in the bonus. Hill tied the game on the first, but missed the second.

Smith grabbed the offensive board, but he dribbled it out, seemingly under the impression that Cleveland had the lead. The Cavaliers couldn’t get a good look off, and the game went to overtime. LeBron had 49 points, eight assists and seven boards in regulation, while Curry led the Dubs with a 29-8-5 line.

In the extra period, the Warriors wasted no time capitalizing on J.R.’s mistake. It started with a pair of Durant free throws, followed by a Thompson corner 3 off good ball movement in transition, and then a Livingston floater off a gorgeous (and ill-advised) over-the-head feed from Curry.

The Dubs had a seven-point lead with 3:01 to go, built by a few great contests at the rim and defensive boards to ignite the offense. From there, the floodgates opened.

The Warriors outscored the Cavs 15-4 in the overtime period, with Draymond’s 3 serving as the final dagger to put the game away.

Rapid reactions:

• The Warriors HAVE to be better on the boards. Their -15 rebounding margin doesn’t seem like a big deal, but they gave up 19(!!!) offensive boards, providing LeBron with additional looks against a defense that is already missing Andre Iguodala.
• Golden State’s offense needs to keep the ball moving late in tight games, or at least put the ball in Curry’s hand if it’s going to be iso-heavy down the stretch. We’ve seen Durant do this too many times, and we know how this story usually ends.
• The third quarter actually wasn’t as one-sided in Golden State’s favor as expected. Entering Game 1, the Dubs were +130 in postseason third quarters (with the next-closest team being +38) and +371 in regular season third quarters (with the next-closest team being +172). On Thursday night, they were only a +6, and were outscored by six in the fourth.
• LeBron was simply magnificent. The Cavs didn’t lose Game 1 on Hill’s missed free throw and Smith’s inexplicable gaffe in the waning seconds alone, but man…those mistakes felt huge. Cleveland squandered perhaps its best chance to make this series competitive, especially if Iguodala returns, wasting an all-time performance from the King.
• Only this Cavs team could lose a game where LeBron dropped a 51-8-8 stat line and Durant shot 8-for-22.
• Tristan Thompson was ejected late in the game, for Lord only knows why. Expect the league to look into that call, as well as a couple of skirmishes between Draymond and Thompson, as well as Klay Thompson, Curry and LeBron. This is unfortunate, since the officiating crew escalated the situation by tossing Thompson, then letting Draymond taunt him. Here’s hoping the “punch” Thompson threw at Green doesn’t result in a suspension.
• Nance was a nice boost of energy off the bench for the Cavs. Jordan Clarkson (2-for-9) was the exact inverse of that. Perhaps more minutes for Kyle Korver and any playing time for Rodney Hood is warranted at this point?
• LeBron played 48 minutes of a 53-minute game, and his team lost. That does not bode well for his fatigue in the rest of this series, especially with two Game 7s already under his belt in these playoffs.
• This series might be short and fairly predictable (Warriors in 5 still seems inevitable), but like the conference finals, no one can ever say the road leading us to that outcome was boring.

Next: 2018 NBA Finals series preview

Game 2 will be in Golden State on Sunday night.