Golden State Beats Cleveland 105-97 to Win NBA Finals

The Golden State Warriors won their first NBA title since 1975 on June 16th, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 105-97 in Oakland behind 25 point each from Stephen Curry and Andre Igu0dala and a triple double from Draymond Green. Golden State won the series four games to two.  Iguodala was named the Most Valuable Player in the Finals.

LeBron James scored 32 points, had nine assists, and pulled down 18 rebounds for Cleveland. But the Cavaliers didn’t have the depth to finish of the Warriors, especially after Kyrie Irving went down with a knee injury. Still, the Cavaliers had a great season in LeBron’s first year back in Cleveland, going to Game 6 of The Finals after finishing 33-49 in the 2013-14 season. The future is bright there, especially with Irving and Kevin Love returning following injuries. There is one cloud on the horizon, however; several Cavaliers are eligible to be free agents on July 1st. That includes James, who had a one year deal and player option for a second year. Owner Dan Gilbert says he’s willing to spend big money, so they’ll probably retain several players, though others like J.R. Smith or Matthew Dellavedova could be squeezed out if the figures get too high.

It should be noted that Golden State head coach Steve Kerr was a winner in his first year of head coaching, not only of the Warriors, but his first year as an NBA head coach of any team. Kerr knows what its like to win: as a player he won three titles with the Chicago Bulls in the Michael Jordan era and also won two with the San Antonio Spurs.