Blue Man Hoop
Fansided

Will the Warriors Stay Undefeated After a Trip to Cleveland for Game 3?

By Andrew Ites

OAKLAND, CA - JUNE 03: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors drives against George Hill #3 of the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 2 of the 2018 NBA Finals at ORACLE Arena on June 3, 2018 in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - JUNE 03: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors drives against George Hill #3 of the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 2 of the 2018 NBA Finals at ORACLE Arena on June 3, 2018 in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Warriors head to Cleveland up 2-0 in the NBA Finals after a couple of wins at Oracle Arena. Will they suffer their first loss of the Finals in Game 3?

The Warriors nearly gave the Cavs the reason to believe they could win this series in Game 1, but ultimately came up victorious after a few notable blunders from Cleveland and a dominant overtime performance.

Golden State followed that up with a comfortable wire-to-wire win in Game 2 to give them a 2-0 lead before the series moves to Cleveland.

The Cavs have been much better at home this postseason as they are 8-1 at Quicken Loans Arena in this year’s playoffs, and they’ve won eight playoff games in a row at home after losing to the Pacers in Game 1 of the first round.

Cleveland has won two Game 3’s at home this postseason, but they obviously haven’t faced a team of the Warriors’ caliber in either of those matchups.

Golden State is 1-1 when they’ve been on the road for a Game 3 in this year’s playoffs, including a 19-point loss in New Orleans in round two.

It’s hard to define any NBA Finals matchup as a potential “trap game”, but the Warriors have shown an ability to become disinterested, even in the postseason.

After an easy Game 2 victory, it would be easy to see the Warriors to take their foot off the gas and allow the Cavs to take Game 3.

I expected Golden State to win this series in five games before the series started, and I’ll predict Game 3 to be their lone loss in this year’s Finals.

A loss in Game 3 and a win in Game 4 would allow the Warriors to clinch the championship at home in Game 5, and that’s exactly how I expect the next three games to play out.

Next: Takeaways from Game 2 victory vs. Cavs

More from Blue Man Hoop

Game Details

Golden State Warriors at Cleveland Cavaliers

Tip-Off: Wednesday, June 6, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. PST

Location: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio

TV: ABC

Radio: 95.7 The Game, Warriors Radio Network

Home/Warriors News