Cleveland Cavaliers: 3 adjustments for Game 4 vs. Warriors
1. Cut down on late-game blunders
If the Cavaliers can get a game off the Warriors, it’s not going to be in a blowout. They will have to fight and scrap on every possession. LeBron James will probably have to put up 50 points again. If he can get some help from his teammates it’s possible for the Cavs to prolong this series, but in order to do so they must avoid costly mistakes late in the game.
J.R. Smith‘s Game 1 blunder was probably one of the dumbest plays in NBA Finals history. However, he is not the only one to blame when it comes to late-game mistakes in this series. In Game 1 it was the responsibility of the coaching staff to call a timeout in the final moments. Instead, confusion reigned and the clock ran out. Below you can see LeBron’s reaction to the news that they had a timeout left:
LeBron’s visibly distraught after Ty Lue told him Cavs had a timeout left at the end of Game 1
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 4, 2018
🎥: https://t.co/TJodZTnT8F pic.twitter.com/RztlHGuUby
For all of LeBron’s superhuman play in this series, he is not not blameless either. In the final minutes Game 3, with the Cavs down 3 and desperately needing a basket, LeBron got the mismatch he wanted against Curry.
Instead of shooting over him or driving to the basket, he proceeded to drop the ball off to Tristan Thompson, who fumbled around in the paint before throwing up an awful turnaround miss. This play prompted some pretty harsh Twitter reactions, but not without reason:
I want everyone to keep in mind that with just over a minute left the Cavs were down 3... LeBron got the switch he wanted with Curry and backed him into the lane, and PASSED to Tristan Thompson (8 pts for the game), who missed a bunny, leading to the Durant dagger 3. #ThatsNoGOAT
— Zac Kernell (@ZacKernell) June 7, 2018
It’s hard to find fault with LeBron after all he’s done this season. He carried a terrible team all the way to the Finals and almost singlehandedly took Game 1 at Oracle Arena. But if the Cavs are going to win Game 4, his decision-making has to be flawless. Not only that, but every Cavalier has to play smart for 48 minutes.
Next: The 50 greatest NBA players of all time (updated, 2016-17)
If they don’t, this series won’t make it to Game 5.