"You take one of the best teams that we had ever assembled past year, that we saw in the regular season and in the post-season, and then in the off-season you add a high-powered offensive talent like (Durant) and a great basketball IQ like that, that's what stands out", James said.
Well, that's sure comforting for the Cavs. But for the most part, we just try to play hard and try to play smart every possession down. He drove and nothing known to the Almighty, man or the Warriors defense could deny him.
Golden State's record-breaking 14th consecutive postseason win came in Steve Kerr's return to the Warriors' bench after he missed the previous 11 games while dealing the spinal-fluid issues.
And now Curry has Durant next to him.
But the Warriors had the answer as sharp-shooting guard Stephen Curry stepped up with a triple-double of his own - 32 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, while also committing eight turnovers. But this airball was as defining a moment as anything else that's happened in the first two games of the NBA Finals. Kevin Love has been a different player, and is putting up 21 points and 14 rebounds a night. The Warriors were too deep, too talented. That trend has continued in this series and has helped the Warriors earn some breathing space against the Cavs. The Splash Brother has been struggling in the postseason but slipped out of his slump, adding 22 points and 7 rebounds. While it's easy to focus on the matchup with James, who looked borderline unstoppable going for 29 points on 12-of-18 shooting, Durant is doing the things that go unnoticed on defense as well.
"Oh, we have got a plan in Cleveland, we're going to shut him down". It's what they do.
Golden State flourishes in the open floor.
The Warriors overcame their mistakes.
But the biggest cheer from the crowd at the Oracle Arena was saved for Kerr as he returned to the bench for the first time during the post-season. He blocked Love, grabbed the rebound and went coast-to-coast and eventually scoring over Love.
The reporter said Green had avoided going over line in terms of his emotions. Before Sunday's historic Game 2 win, Kerr walked into the media room for the pregame presser and let the media know he'll give coaching a go for the rest of the Finals. Survive a Curry-led barrage in the third and you are treated to a Durant-charged blitzkrieg in the fourth.
The strategy seemed to pay off, as the Cavs scored 64 points in the first half and kept the game closer than the previous one.
"Obviously, he's a great defender, so if you have opportunities, you know you have to do something pretty special to score", Curry said. "We're young, healthy, and playing a game we love".
But Curry was passive about one thing - his eight turnovers, which he pointed to over his first playoff triple-double.
9 - Turnovers for the Cavs after 20 in Game One. "They won their first two games like they're supposed to".
Already 2-0 down in the series, James got a little testy when asked if Cleveland had to defend home court in the next two games.
"We made runs - we cut it to four at one point and then they went on quick 9-0 run or 12-0 run", said LeBron. "And it definitely is a must-win".