Winning a championship came down to a 'team'

Forget all the individual storylines for a second. I want to focus on the teams that competed here. For as much as we like to make it about individuals, the Golden State Warriors were the best regular season team of all time. And it showed. Their passing, movement on and off the ball, defensive coordination, and everything else showed a team with seemingly perfect chemistry. They seemed to be pieces that fit perfectly together to form a whole much greater than the sum of their parts.

Cleveland, on the other hand, seemed to be the antithesis. They were a grouping of seemingly incongruous talent, often devolving into isolation ball and a lack of coordination. They seemed to be a bunch of individually talented pieces that formed a whole much less than the sum of their parts.

While these narratives were easy and seemingly straightforward, the truth is much more complex. In Game 7, to win a championship, Cleveland’s team brought it home. Everyone played their part, from JR Smith’s 2 big 3-pointers when the Cavs were struggling offensively, to Tristan Thompson hitting 3/4 at the free throw line when the Cavs needed it most. But it was the much-maligned “big 3” that brought the Cavs the championship when everything was on the line. Three plays, one from each of the big three, were the key.

Kevin Love’s Defensive Play

Kevin Love has taken the most heat of any Cavs player. His role has been reduced, he is slow and ineffective on defense and seems incapable of finding a consistent role in the Cleveland offense. How fitting, then, that his play of the game came in the best 15 seconds of defense in the entire series. After Kyrie’s big shot, Golden State got into their offense and got Kevin Love switched on to Steph, exactly what they wanted. What happened next was the most improbable event of the Finals. Kevin Love moved his feet and stayed in front of Steph through a series of moves that had broken countless ankles all season. He even guards Steph from 30 feet knowing his range and finally pesters him into a highly contested shot that Steph couldn’t hit. While everyone is rightly obsessing over the Kyrie shot and LeBron block, you cannot overstate how amazing this defense was on the back-to-back MVP.

LeBron’s Chase-Down Block

LeBron’s status as the best basketball player in the game today has always been about his multi-faceted contributions. His passing, his defense, his vision, his scoring, his rebounding, his ability to make his teammates better. People love the unparalleled shooting ability of Steph Curry, but forget that basketball is a team sport with so many elements involved. With the game stuck at 89-89 for what felt like forever, it really felt like the next basket was going to be winner of the NBA Finals. When the Warriors got out in transition, it looked like an easy layup for Andre Iguodala. JR Smith did a good job challenging to slow Iguodala down a fraction, and the superhuman James came out of nowhere to prevent those two points. This was the second best chase-down block of all time, behind only Tayshaun Prince’s legendary block of Reggie Miller. What was most incredible is that if you watch closely, Iguodala could potentially have gone up on the right side of the rim or finished with a reverse on the left side. LeBron, while coming back at full speed, was aware of that and went up with both hands on either side of the rim. Nothing like this player will ever be seen again.

Kyrie’s Dagger Three-Pointer

Lastly, Kyrie’s 3. He is the most offensively gifted player in the league. He can finish with his left and right in the most creative ways in the lane, has a knockdown jumper, and just looks smooth as hell doing it. Everyone’s rightly obsessed with Steph’s absolutely insane season, but people slept on Kyrie’s ability to hold his own against Steph on the offensive end of the court with the higher stakes of the playoffs. That was why it was so fitting that Kyrie hit the dagger of the game with the most classic of Steph moves – the lateral moving 3. He takes the jab step, moves to the right and elevates before Steph can react. Steph has done that hundreds of times this season, but got a very harsh taste of his own medicine on the NBA’s biggest stage. His stroke may not be at Steph’s level, but people will not underestimate Uncle Drew again.

Forget your simple narratives. The Cavaliers are the NBA champions because they were the better team. This is why I love sports.