Golden State Warriors have to be salivating looking at Cavs’ team photo
The Golden State Warriors have gotten better since winning the championship last June while the Cleveland Cavaliers have gone in the other direction.
The Golden State Warriors were the best team in the regular season. They somehow got even better once the playoffs started and Kevin Durant fully returned from his injury. After completely destroying every team that dared to stand in their way, including the Cleveland Cavaliers, en route to a championship, they got even better.
On paper, it looks like the Warriors improved during the summer. Nick Young’s personality, size, and style should fit in nicely with Golden State, filling the Ian Clark role effectively. Omri Casspi gives the champs shooting off the bench and guys like Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston more room to operate inside.
With the exception of Iguodala and JaVale McGee, there was no doubt that every free agent that Golden State wanted to retain would be coming back. They added new pieces through free agency. They increased their depth with young talent with potential.
They look poised to make another run at the Larry O’Brien trophy. For the last three years, they’ve played the Cleveland Cavaliers with the championship. Many are expecting a part four in this saga, but they’re not expecting a potential NBA Finals series between the two teams to be close.
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The Cavaliers have not had the offseason that the Warriors have had. Following the Finals, All-Star Kyrie Irving requested a trade. They sent him to the Boston Celtics in exchange for Isaiah Thomas who may be out all the way until the All-Star break with a hip injury.
Furthermore, the Cavaliers haven’t gotten any younger. During the Finals, it was clear they weren’t nearly as fast or athletic as the Warriors. They didn’t address those problems.
Several of the Cavaliers players–including LeBron James–posted a picture of an unofficial team workout. With training camp starting in just a few days, the team has gotten together for media day. In a move that should make Cleveland fans happy, the squad got together for a workout.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BZT-DLIB-Kg/?hl=en&taken-by=kingjames
Cavs fans should be excited that the team is showing the dedication to start putting the work in that early before camp actually starts. With new players, it’s important to build chemistry. Preparing for the Warriors is a daunting task.
Some Cavaliers supporters were actually enthusiastic about the picture. Seeing that team together made them excited. It’s amazing what delusion can do.
The Cleveland Cavaliers’ unofficial team photo should have the Golden State Warriors salivating. Stephen Curry and Draymond Green should be licking their lips thinking about how they can eat that team up. That picture must be making Kevin Durant want to tweet even more.
LeBron James is amazing. Kevin Love is a really good player. Tristan Thompson and Jae Crowder are solid.
And that’s it. Thomas is injured so I’m not going to include him in the small section with the positives. He could be out for a while so you can’t really count on him, even when he does return to action.
The Cavs’ key free agent acquisitions are laughable. Derrick Rose isn’t going to slow the Warriors down. Jose Calderon is even less capable of doing so. Jeff Green just isn’t that good.
The returning players aren’t much better. Richard Jefferson has shown that he’s all talk and can’t stay in front of anyone at this point. Kyle Korver, an elite sharpshooter, struggled mightily to defend or offer much on the offensive end. Channing Frye couldn’t even play. Iman Shumpert isn’t good.
The pièce de rèsistance is second from the left. Yes, that is Kendrick Perkins. Kendrick Pekins is signing a contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the year 2017. Amazing, right?
The Warriors aren’t afraid of the Cavaliers. Unlike teams such as the Boston Celtics or Toronto Raptors, they don’t fear James. They have a healthy respect for him and his abilities, but they’re not scared of him.
They should be looking forward to playing him because, with those veterans, the Warriors can play as freely as they want. The two healthy point guards they have in Rose and Calderon are not going to be able to touch Stephen Curry. It’s absolutely necessary to have wing depth in today’s game, but Green and Jefferson aren’t it.
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The cherry on top is KENDRICK PERKINS. I mean, seriously. Think about that.
The Cavs traded away one of the very select few that Golden State struggled to defend. It was clear that the Dubs had a hard time keeping Kyrie Irving in check and they couldn’t create an environment that made him want to stay despite being a lock for the Finals.
The Cleveland team that struggled to defend last season will have an even harder time trying to stop anyone, especially the team that could go down as the most potent offensive squad in the history of the game. The Golden State Warriors can’t wait to have this Cleveland Cavaliers team in front of them.