Fighting The Fight

I watched the second half of the Warriors Cavs game with my son Josh last night.

I woke up thinking about this play:

The Cavs have an uphill battle. The Warriors sure feel like a dynasty right now. But LeBron and his teammates, notably Kyrie and JR, showed up last night and put up a fight. That was missing in the first two games in Oakland.

There is something about this photo and that play. It shows that LeBron is not going to take this sitting down. He’s is fighting the fight. I said I thought the Cavs would defend home court throughout this series. They sure did that last night.

#Sports

Comments (Archived):

  1. LIAD

    Such compelling imagery highlighting human ability.A person flying through the air wearing bright colours frozen in time. Hard to beat it.Cant remember the last time I got juiced seeing a photo of someone wearing beige standing on the putting green.

    1. fredwilson

      i also love Steph’s face in that photo

      1. AlexSF

        I loved Lebron’s face in the previous game in Oakland.

      2. Michael Jordan

        That is the problem with Lebron fans. One shot or dunk doesn’t make the series. I think any player in that position would have made that shot,, it is just that it doesn’t get hyped as much as lebrons would.You should see his face and crying during turnoversAnyway, cavs got the one win they were destined to. Series is 4 – 1 warriors

    2. kevando

      I finally see the brilliance behind choosing 23

    3. sigmaalgebra

      The NBA is missing out on the big bucks: Replay the game in slo-mo, HD, from several angles, with expert commentary, diagrams of plays, etc. Call it the Coach’s View. “Big bucks”? LOTS more time for ads and from viewers really paying attention. Also, get a MUCH better view of the details being praised here.

  2. sachmo

    LeBron should have stayed in Miami. There is something to be said for the value of patience. I’m rooting for golden state…

    1. fredwilson

      You and everyone else. But not me

      1. pointsnfigures

        me neither. I am on the Cleveland train. Not because I hate Golden State but because Cleveland hasn’t had a championship since something like 1960

        1. K_Berger

          Spoken like a Cubs fan.

          1. pointsnfigures

            The Cubbies are coming! I am down in NOLA at a NationalWW2Museum.org board meeting (my last one) and I am wearing a Cubs jersey walking around. Everyone giving me the thumbs up.. I think I will wear it Sat when I go up in a P-51

        2. Dave Speca

          1964.

        3. JamesHRH

          Of all the places to be sentimental in the face of innovation…..

      2. JamesHRH

        Knickerbockers are not in it Fred.

  3. William Mougayar

    Yup, I watched the last 3 quarters after my AMA last evening. I stopped watching with 7 minutes remaining. The Cavs defense was amazing. They were blocking & stealing everything.

  4. creative group

    Broken record playing…Knicks, Yankees, NY Giants, Rangers and Liberty.The Cavaliers forced basketball fans to believe the statement of Kevin Garnett.https://youtu.be/Wcz_kDCBTBk

  5. William Mougayar

    And that dunk was after he almost tripped on the ball dribble after a steal. You really need a video clip of the last 5 seconds to see the full scope of what he did there.

    1. creative group

      William Mougayar:What timezone are you in? Are you in the Canada? The only time to be up there is summer. (IOO)

      1. William Mougayar

        EST.

  6. creative group

    The average unsophisticated investor wonders how a person who earned millions/wealth can misappropriate it.http://m.bleacherreport.com

  7. bsoist

    Wow!

  8. Tom Labus

    I’m glad the finals went back to playing 2,2,1,1,1. Must better sequence

    1. kidmercury

      Agreed that is an awesome sequence

  9. leigh

    Maybe he was inspired by the Toronto fans! (Yes it’s still all about the Raptors – https://www.youtube.com/wat

    1. Brandon G. Donnelly

      respect

  10. creative group

    Comfort Zone…It is amazing how a person performs when in a comfort zone. The above average person can perform in any zone.JR Smith only confirms to Knick supporters he is a mercurial nut. Don’t know when you will get that amazing performance but when you do it can be lights out. But usually only in a comfort zone.In a startup you need a team to perform outside thier comfort zone. The obstacles approaching don’t care about your comfort zone.

    1. fredwilson

      I backed his Kickstarter TEAM SWISH – Reality Show – JR Smith, Bodyguard, and Family., via @Kickstarter https://www.kickstarter.com…I doubt he gets it funded but it will be entertaining if he does

    2. JaredMermey

      When he was on the Knicks he would be the only guy I would want to shoot no matter how bad is FG% was on the evening. It was hard for JR to have a full off-night…maybe an off-quarter or an off-shift…but never an off-game.

      1. creative group

        JaredMermey:We haven’t known any other teams to root for than NYC’s teams. We are aware of top to bottom with them.JR Smith antics on and off the court were never for a competitive advantage to help the Knicks win. It was always self centered to gain contracts and get his little brother Chris a contract just so he could claim he made a NBA team despite Chris being a below average D-League bench player.

  11. Dave Pinsen

    Great photo, but another boring game.The best-of-seven format sucks. What’s the rationale for it other than greed? I think the odds of blowouts would be less in a single elimination tournament.

    1. LE

      It’s a business. Why call it greed?Hamilton just raised the price of the best seats to $849.http://www.nytimes.com/2016

      1. Dave Pinsen

        Hamilton isn’t best-of-seven.

        1. LE

          Point is that sports (like Broadway) is a business. Which is primarily about making money, as much as you can, without crashing and burning. The people who invested in Hamilton didn’t put up $12m for any other reason other than to try and turn a profit. I mean their were other reasons for sure but that is the primary reason.

  12. Brandon G. Donnelly

    what’s with these huge swings in momentum for the home team?

    1. pointsnfigures

      I was thinking the same thing. No game has been close. That’s not natural. If we think in terms of standard deviation, each game has been a +3 std deviation event. Most NBA games between top teams are within 15 points or less.

      1. Brandon G. Donnelly

        somewhat similar thing happened in previous cavs series against raptors (in the first 4 games). the teams looked entirely different away vs. at home.

        1. Elia Freedman

          Except game 6. Cavs won on the road to clinch it.

    2. Twain Twain

      Much more passion fuel from their home fans which drives adrenaline and makes them believe they can and should win.It’s the same at Wimbledon; home crowds cheer especially louder for Andy Murray => wins.

      1. Brandon G. Donnelly

        i hear you.and then, at the same time, clearly enough to throw off visiting team.

  13. kidmercury

    I missed the game, but I wonder if cavs will start Jefferson ahead of love for game 4, if that is seen as the defensive key

  14. JaredMermey

    My prediction is already off since I thought GSW would sweep.Best part of yesterday for Cavs is the way they won feels replicable. They played great defense more than GSW missed shots and their offense came from many sources. Unlike last year where it required Herculean effort from LBJ, it feels like they could do this three more times.That being said, GSW in five.

    1. Brandon G. Donnelly

      i said 4-1, because i figured the cavs would take one at home. almost impossible to predict with these huge swings in momentum though.

      1. JaredMermey

        Yes – and hard to tell how much Steph missing shots is him just off or Cavs defense getting to him. We are so used to seeing him hit incredible shots with hands in his face — both off the dribble and on passes — that it is hard to tell the root cause when seeing him miss difficult shots.

        1. Brandon G. Donnelly

          Watch last night? Curry back.

  15. sigmaalgebra

    From the highlights clip of the first game I saw, it looked like (A) LeBron was for old basketball with a lot of emphasis in the paint and (B) the Warriors were playing new basketball with a lot of 3 point shots and only occasional fast drives into the paint for layups or ally-oops.So, LeBron’s job all night is to run from the paint at one end of the court to the paint at the other end of the court, while Steph, etc. stay close to the midcourt line and make/defend the 3 point shots. Then, often, by the time LeBron gets into the defensive paint, the Warriors have already scored. Then in the foot race to the Cavs offensive end of the court, Steph, etc. start the running nearly a half court ahead of LeBron, and the Warriors defense is nicely in place by the time LeBron gets there.Is that what’s happening?

    1. Michael Jordan

      Good observation .. That is exactly what is happening and I will make sure to read the game as it happens

  16. bfeld

    Last night, as Amy and I were watching the game, I said out loud “There are 9 people on the court and then there’s Lebron James.” Wow.

    1. Elia Freedman

      Anyone who doesn’t think James is still the MVP of this league is missing the point. Cavs without James: #1 pick in the draft every year. Cavs with James: best team in the east by a long shot.

      1. pointsnfigures

        in a zone

    2. JamesHRH

      Think of how many sports he could dominate…..tight end or defensive end in the NFL, any position in MLB…..

  17. LE

    It shows that LeBron is not going to take this sitting down. He’s is fighting the fight.This is obvious to me. It shows that LeBron has quite an edge over his team mates both physically and mentally.All of the players are of a caliber that they have gotten to the point of playing on a great NBA team. You would think they’d all be trying as hard and not giving up. Yet you are singling out LeBron in a way that indicates that that the others have thrown in the towel and are perhaps even depressed. Lebron is superior mentally (and physically) and he fights on. Against the odds. [2] The mental advantage and unrelenting fight.[1] If I understand what you are saying and maybe not being a sports guy I don’t.[2] Reminds me of Bernie Sanders.

    1. creative group

      LE:”Lebron is superior mentally (and physically) and he fights on. Against the odds. [2] The mental advantage and unrelenting fight.”reviewing over thirty Bernie Sanders actual YouTube video’s regarding his statements and views on embracing socialism by definition and practice he could never win over the minds of a country based upon capitalism/free market. 74 year old Bernie gives us no sense of any of those qualities.

      1. LE

        I am not a Sanders supporter. But I do admire his stamina and (crazy) determination to win the nomination and continue to fight, especially at his age and against all odds.His accomplishment is much greater than Hillary’s, given the obstacles that he faced and that Hillary was anointed by the democratic leadership. Hillary was picked by the party, Sanders clearly was picked by the people.People seem to be wildly happy that we might have a women President. All that happened is that the powers that be decided to elect her. Obama had a much greater accomplishment going for him he was a long shot at first. (His edge was Oprah of course as I’ve said).

        1. creative group

          LE:before you answer our following question can you just think about it before responding. Because there has never been a female President (Besides Nancy Reagan’s whispering in Ronnie’s ear doesn’t qualify) do you think the cultural biases within the US society as a whole just are making excuses not to want a female to become POTUS? (HRC in a bubble decisions have only fueled her opposition).#Independentsrise

  18. Dan Epstein

    In the latest Bill Simmons podcast (Malcolm Gladwell guest), interesting couple minutes on how serious Lebron takes his training.https://overcast.fm/+FPVkGz

  19. Mariah Lichtenstern

    My bet is Dubs narrowly win tonight and take game five in Oakland squarely.

    1. creative group

      Mariah Lichtenstein :Now you have a chance to review and reflect how do you feel about that GSW loss?Read your earlier posts on your faint allegiance for GSW. Casual fan. Can expect them to return at least to deep in playoffs but without Ibeka the GSW are doomed.Our Knicks could only wish we had the problem of reaching not just the finals but playoffs.

      1. Mariah Lichtenstern

        It reflects my earliest comment that we could not count Cavs out. My honest reflection now is that, while Dubs were undoubtedly tired, and took a loss with Draymond Green out a game, they missed too many easy shots. Everything, including Curry’s ejection and Ayesha’s “rogue” Twitter post felt Oscar worthy. But I’m happy for LeBron and what it means to him and Cleveland.

        1. creative group

          Mariah Lichtenstein:refreshing truth can prevail. Now only if the Knicks could let Phil go to the Lakers. Ruining the team with broken parts.

  20. Brandon G. Donnelly

    would love to see a chart of historical point differentials for NBA finals games 🙂

  21. sigmaalgebra

    Did someone say athleticism? WOW!

  22. creative group

    Willy Karam:viewing Spud Webb promoted us to take away the down vote. Classic! And Bird and Kevin McHale getting dunked on priceless.

  23. Elia Freedman

    There is no doubt that Curry is an incredible player. But when he missed games this year his team won anyway and by the same ridiculous margins GS won games with Curry. Can’t say the same for the Cavs when James missed games.

  24. JamesHRH

    You are right and wrong.The Ws are the new way to play, outside in, 3 & D. Their system, depth and coaching beats other teams – that is not Steph’s fault. If you could pick any one player in the Association to start a new team – and you were building a modern 3 & D team – you pick Steph not LeBron.Steph is GOOG to LBJ’s MS or Apple to his BB, etc..