Cavs win Game 3 with help from LeBron, Dellavedova, and Home Crowd

In a game that started to mean more with each passing second, the Cleveland Cavaliers delivered.

After securing their first Finals win in Franchise history in Oracle Arena, the Cavs came home to a rowdy crowd, a crowd that hoped that they would witness a event on their home court that would continue to dispel the national doubters about their team.

What was brought was a 96-91 wine and gold win over the Golden State Warriors, giving Cleveland the 2-1 series lead.

LeBron James once again took command early on and kept it throughout the game. While the Warriors cut a 20-point lead down to one, it was James’ show to lead, and even though another night of missed shots did transpire for him, he was able to dictate the pace of the game.

After stealing some spotlight for his defensive performance on Steph Curry in Game 2, Matthew Dellavedova shined once again, as his tenacity once again riled Curry, and also contributed on the offensive end.

These were only a few key points that the Cavaliers saw in their win.

So, how did the Cavs win this one?

1. LeBron once again showed us that he is still MVP caliber, if there was anyone left out there that thought he wasn’t. His presence on the court is always something that opposing teams need to account for. LeBron James has once again shown that he will do whatever it takes to win this NBA Finals. While he was very secretive on his “motivation” one can clearly see that whatever it is, it’s clearly fueling him to another level.

2.Dellavedova once again shined. It’s interesting to note that the entire city of Cleveland were unsure of what he meant to this team in the long run. In the NBA Playoffs, we have seen a whole new side to his game that many thought he did not have. Dellavedova’s constant hustle has really shined for this team.

3. Tristan Thompson was a problem for the Warriors to defend. When he was on the court, especially in the paint, it seemed that Golden State just had difficulty trying to find an answer for him. It was prevalent when the Cavs took him out; there were stretches where the Warriors were able to get into a rhythm with Thompson off the floor. By the way, Thompson is an impending free agent, a fact that the Cavs know and will no doubt try their best to make him remain a Cavalier.

4. It was another weird night for Harrison Barnes and Draymond Green for the Warriors. Both players have had stretches during this series where they have become non-existent in the Golden State offense. The Cavs defense has shown a whole new level of pressure that the Warriors have not seen in the playoffs so far.

5. Defense is another huge aspect for the Cavs. Its what has kept them in every single game that they have played in the playoffs. While the emphasis might be to limit the splash brother’s shots, Cleveland did the little things on defense: hustling to defend, close the lanes, switching, contesting shots, etc.

6. The Cavaliers bench contributed hugely for the team, in more ways than scoring. Mike Miller dived for a loose ball to keep it alive, James Jones hustled in defense and created shots for others by stretching the floor, and J.R Smith focused on key passes to put his team in position. Having bench productivity on the offense end is nice, but when the other aspects of the game are delivered, it makes a team a whole lot better.

7. One aspect that will not be brought up at all is the job David Blatt and his coaching staff has done for this series so far. Key substitutions were made at the right times, and key plays were implemented in the game that greatly helped the Cavaliers.

For now, we enter a key point in this series; Game 4 will mean as much as it does to the Cavs as it does to the Warriors. The Warriors have their backs to the wall. Can they reclaim home court advantage? Can they really handle a Cavaliers squad if they are down 3-1? Meanwhile the Cavs also have a lot of pressure on them as well. Can we bring the same amount of intensity for this next game? Will Steph Curry really be held to another poor performance, despite his 4th quarter surge?

All we know is this: Game 4 will be exciting to watch.