Warriors defeat Cavs in Game 1; Quotes of the night

The Golden State Warriors defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Here are some of the best quotes from last night.

The Golden State Warriors are now just three victories from securing their second consecutive NBA title.

This matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers is what everyone wanted to see and what most expected. The Cavaliers are fully healthy and well-rested this time around as LeBron James has had the help of Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love all throughout their relatively challenge-free run to the top of the East.

Last year, Love didn’t make it to the Finals after suffering an injury in the first round and Irving hurt himself in overtime of Game 1 against the Warriors. This time they are ready to go yet the only change it has made thus far has hurt Cleveland. Instead of coming away with a narrow overtime victory, the Warriors defeated the Cavs by 15 points.

Last year’s Finals MVP, Andre Iguodala, had another fantastic game against James and the Cavaliers. There was an incident in the third quarter when Matthew Dellavedova swiped at the ball and hit Iguodala in the groin with his fist. Iguodala took exception to it and got into the Cavs’ guard’s face.

Dellavedova is considered one of the league’s “dirty” players so attacking him would be pretty easy. Always professional, Iguodala took the high road, commending the Aussie’s tenacity.

Shaun Livingston was the difference between a Golden State win and a Cleveland win. He scored 20 points off the bench without turning the ball over once. He was getting to all of his spots, controlling the tempo of the game while playing solid defense. He continued his dominance over the Cavaliers, but this time, he did it on the biggest stage when they needed it most.

This was one of those odd and very rare nights where neither Stephen Curry nor Klay Thompson could really get another going as they combined for 20 points on 8-27 shooting. Livingston carried the load, helping the Warriors build and maintain their lead.

Livingston has been through a lot during his NBA career. As a member of the Los Angeles Clippers, he suffered a gruesome knee injury that almost required him to have his leg amputated. Draymond Green talked about this when asked about Livingston’s impact.

It puts into perspective so many things that we perhaps take for granted. Nothing is guaranteed. This title window can close at any minute. The things that we have can be taken away instantly. We also sometimes treat athletes as super humans and we forget that, at their core, they’re just people like us fans.

Curry also spoke about how difficult it is to guard the tall Livingston, especially when he releases the ball at such a high point.

While the Warriors probably won’t rely on Livingston to score 20 points in a game again, it’s comforting, as a Golden State fan, to see your stars struggling and an unsung hero step up during the most important times. It also gave us insight into how much respect Livingston demands and just how good and under-appreciated he really is.

The Warriors play Game 2 on Sunday and they’ll look to take a 2-0 lead before heading to Cleveland.