Sports

Warriors-Thunder highlight big weekend of basketball on Channel 2

LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers shoots a lay-up against the San Antonio Spurs on January 23, 2018 at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. 

ATLANTA — After a frenzy of trades before the NBA trade deadline, the 2018 NBA All-Star weekend was one that was nothing short of exciting and was filled with glimpses of what could end up being one of the most competitive finishes of the regular season before the playoffs.

In what usually is a typical, high scoring game that features high-flying dunks and slick moves that require for one to take a double take of what he or she just witnessed before their eyes, this year’s All-Star game -- one that featured #TeamLeBron and #TeamSteph instead of the traditional East-West format -- had a much stronger feeling of competition. In the final minutes of Sunday’s game, it made you feel like you were watching a win-or-go-home playoff game with two teams battling for a trip to the NBA Finals.

One example is the the way that Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James and Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant trapped Steph Curry in the corner sideline, where he hoped to carry out the typical “Curry fashion” of nailing a 3-pointer in the final seconds to tie the game but it did not happen.

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Instead, two future NBA Hall of Famers and two of the most influential players in today’s era of basketball -- one of which is Curry’s current teammate -- forced Curry to pass the ball to Toronto Raptors guard DeMar Derozan for an ill-advised 3-pointer attempt, leaving James and Durant – who for 48 minutes were teammates, smiling and giving each other congratulatory high-fives on the victory.

But now, reality has set in and things are back to normal. The joined forces of players from different teams and conferences coming together for the All-Star break is now but a fun memory. James and Durant are no longer teammates, but back to being rivals who have mutual respect for one another.

It’s back to business for every team, with the goal now to either maintain its place in the playoff race, push for a higher seed or simply land in the top eight teams that will compete in the postseason. When both the Warriors and the Cavaliers take the court for their respective games in prime time action this weekend, the countdown to finishing the regular season will be underway with lots of implications and things to fathom as the season unfolds.

The Warriors, who are coming off a 134-127 win over the Los Angeles Clippers, are preparing for the Oklahoma City Thunder Saturday night. Currently, the Thunder sit in fifth and have a half -game lead over both the sixth placed Denver Nuggets and seventh placed Portland Trailblazers.

As for the new look Cavaliers, who entered the All Star break with four-straight wins but sit in third behind the Boston Celtics and the Raptors, suffered a 110-103 loss to the Washington Wizards in home debut for the Cavaliers new acquisitions. Cleveland goes on the road for a game against the Memphis Grizzlies Friday evening before facing the third-placed San Antonio Spurs Sunday.

With less than seven days left in February, March is right around the corner. Like “March Madness” in college basketball, the March madness and implications of this year’s NBA season are about to heat up. April 11, the final date for regular season games, will be here before you know it. It is “game on” until then because every, single, game will count.

Oklahoma City at Golden State | 8:30 p.m. Saturday on Channel 2

The Golden State Warriors went into the All-Star break 6-4 in their last 10 games with a 44-14 record, the second best in the NBA and in the Western Conference.

From the outside looking in -- considering where other teams are right now -- Golden State sits in a pretty good position, one that the NBA champs have been accustomed to.

From a Warriors’ perspective, however, it is great but they know there is a lot of work to be done in their final 23 games before the playoffs begin. Golden State’s 14 losses this season amasses the number of losses they have averaged over the last three seasons.

“We’ve got 20-something games before the playoffs to chase another championship,” said Curry after the NBA All-Star game Sunday. “So, ready to hit the ground running when we get back.”

Kicking off their final stretch, Golden State picked up a close win over the Los Angeles Clippers, 134-127, Thursday night. The Clippers – who are currently fighting to stay in the playoff race – put up a late rally, but Curry did what great players do late in games, hit clutch shots to give the Warriors their first victory after the break.

The Warriors now turn their attention to the Oklahoma City Thunder, a team that has defeated them twice already this season. Until now, the Warriors were 10-1 in the regular season against the Thunder, dating back to the 2014-15 season. The last time OKC defeated Golden State twice in the regular season was the 2013-14 season, when Durant still played in a Thunder uniform.

This year’s Thunder team -- a big three with current NBA MVP Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony and Paul George -- will look to pick up a third-straight win over the NBA champs in the regular season, something the franchise has not done since the 2012-13 season.

In their most recent match over two weeks ago, George and Westbrook torched the Warriors, scoring 38 points and 34 points respectively in a game where the Warriors never led; not to mention the Thunder scored 42 points in the first quarter, even with Anthony suffering a right ankle injury early in the game.

Durant, who enters Saturday’s game as the second leading scorer for the Warriors and seventh best in the league, led the Warriors in scoring with 33 points against his old teammate Westbrook. The problem for the Warriors came in the fact that the Splash Brothers did not have their best shooting night.

Curry, who is averaging nearly 27 points per game, finished with 21, while Thompson finished with 12. The two went 11 of 27 from the floor and four-of-15 from three-point range. Thompson also finished with subpar shooting night in the November 2017 matchup against OKC, where he scored only nine points.

Turnovers hurt Golden State and contributed to the OKC’s success offensively. The Warriors committed 12 first half turnovers that led to 19 points for the Thunder. Golden State committed a total of 25 in the game.

As for Oklahoma City, the Thunder -- behind the stellar play of Westbrook and George -- shot the three ball well in the game, knocking 12 of 31 from the beyond the arc. Mix that with committing turnovers and holding Golden State to eight for 28 shooting from the 3-point line equates to a recipe for success.

Oklahoma City’s game plan for victory will need to look much like it did in the previous game: efficient scoring from the floor, solid percentage of 3-point shooting, forcing the Warriors to commit turnovers and tight defense that disrupts the Warriors stellar ball movement.

The Thunder, who are leading the league in steals, are averaging nine per game. Both George (averaging 2.2 per game) and Westbrook (1.9) rank in the top five in the NBA for steals.

For Golden State, the Warriors must shoot the ball well for two reasons: One, it is what they do best, averaging nearly 116 points per game, the best in the league. Two, OKC can score just as much as Golden State, averaging 107 points per game. Thompson, who has combined for 21 points in the two games facing OKC, will need to find a good offensive rhythm as well.

If both Splash Brothers can get it going, plus Durant and the rest of gang, it should give the Warriors an edge.

The difference maker, however, for the Warriors will need to be not committing a huge number of turnovers that lead to scoring opportunities for the Thunder.

Tipoff is set for 8:30 p.m. from ORACLE Arena.

San Antonio at Cleveland | 3:30 p.m. Sunday on Channel 2

When Cleveland played San Antonio nearly two months ago, the Cavaliers were in a period of major turmoil. Against the Spurs, that turmoil continued as San Antonio defeated Cleveland 114-102, despite LeBron James's 28-point performance and eclipsing 30,000 points in his career.

In what started as the Kevin Love drama turned into a series of frustrating losses and team chemistry issues over the next several weeks, leading to the Cavaliers acquiring four, young new faces to the team before the NBA trade deadline, with the hope of putting the Cavaliers back in the driver’s seat to compete for a NBA title. Even more, to hopefully keep James in Cleveland following this year’s season, something that remains to be seen.

Until then, James and the Cavaliers have 25 games left in the season to build some degree of structure and team chemistry before the playoffs begin. Even with new pieces – Larry Nance Jr, George Hill, Rodney Hood and Jordan Clarkston – their road ahead will be tough as the Eastern Conference with teams like Toronto, Boston, Washington, Milwaukee and Philadelphia looking to make upward moves in the standings.

Cleveland faces a San Antonio team that is dealing some issues of its own, despite sitting in third place in the Western Conference.

Spurs All-NBA forward Kawhi Leonard, who has been battling a right quad injury, was medical cleared to return to the court. Leonard, however, opted to stay out and not return as of now. San Antonio head coach Greg Popovich said in an ESPN article that he doubts Leonard will return this season.

"We only have X number of games left in the season, and he's still not ready to go," Popovich told reporters in San Antonio on Wednesday. "If by some chance he is, it's gonna be pretty late into the season, and it's going to be a pretty tough decision -- how late to bring somebody back. So that's why I'm just trying to be honest and logical. I'll be surprised if he gets back this year."

With Leonard electing to remain off the court, the Spurs look forward to making a consistent push in the playoffs, despite going 4-6 in their last 10 and riding a three-game losing streak.

Instead of stopping Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Dwyane Wade and Derrick Rose, the Spurs will be charged with stopping James and its new weapons, who have shown they can score and defend as well.

James, who is averaging nearly 27 points per game, now has some sufficient help on offense from guys who play with a lot of energy. Factor that in with some contribution from J.R. Smith as well, who has played well since the NBA trade deadline. The Cavaliers enter Sunday’s game ranked fifth in scoring, averaging 110 points per game, fourth in three pointers made, fifth in offensive rating (110.0).

So far, Clarkston is averaging 13 points, Hood is averaging 12, Hill with eight and Nance with eight.

Against a Spurs team led by LaMarcus Aldridge and its veteran players in Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker as anchors, the young Cavaliers will need to make sure they play smart and defend the ball.

Like most players know, when playing against a team coached by Popovich, that team will always have a chance to win. When the Spurs defeated a dysfunctional Cavaliers’ team in January, Dejounte Murray led the way in helping the Spurs get victory, finishing with 19 points and 10 rebounds.

With a solid mix of veterans plus players like Murray, Danny Green knocking down three pointers, Patty Mills providing solid production in spurts and young players like Kyle Anderson and Bryn Forbes making an impact, the Spurs have a chance to beat the Cavaliers again.

The Spurs enter Sunday’s game averaging 102 points per game, 27th best in the league. On defense, San Antonio ranks first in total defense, allowing their opponents less than 99 points, second in defensive rating (101.9) and third in blocks per game (5.5).

In a game that will feature a solid mixture of young and veteran matchups, defense will play a huge factor in the Spurs winning the game, which is true Popovich style.

James, along with his new supporting casts will need to have an all around solid performance on both sides of the ball to pull out the win over the Spurs.

Tipoff is set for 3:30 at Quicken Loans Arena.