4. Steph Curry’s injuries

Steph Curry’s lingering knee and ankle injuries made him noticeably slower during the WCF. He struggled during the first four games vs OKC, but was eventually able to get his rhythm back and help the Warriors come back from their 3-1 ratio.

What scares GSW fans is that if Curry just so much as tweaks his ankles or twists his knee in a bad way, it could spell the end of the series for their team. Steph Curry is the heart of the team and without his distribution skills, his fantastic shooting, and his ability to out-dribble his opponents, GSW be a shell of the team that won the finals last year. Here’s to hoping that all players from both teams stay healthy throughout the series because that’s what the fans want to see!

3. Battle of the Shooting Guards

JR Smith will face off with Klay Thompson yet again in a battle of the shooting guards. Klay burned Smith last year in the perimeter—however, he has been playing remarkable defense this season. Will Smith’s improvement be enough to match Klay’s intensity this time around? The latter has undoubtedly been the Warriors best player this playoffs and the pressure is on Smith to match that intensity. Both players have to tighten their defense and make sure they contribute offensively, whether by scoring, forcing turnovers or dishing out assists.

2. Lebron James’ dominance

LBJ is a monster and that’s a fact. He was phenomenal in the finals last year, and the only reason they lost was because the team lacked depth. This year is a different story—Lebron will have proper assistance, leaving him wide open to do what he does best while retaining the option to move the ball around. The Warriors cannot simply triple team LBJ this time around because Kyrie and Love will make them pay. Will the Warriors be able to contain Lebron? Will they be able to stop his offensive rebounds, his assists and his insane scoring? They’ll need to pull out all the stops to be able to do so.

1. Who will rain down more 3s?

Contrary to popular belief, it’s actually the Cavs and not the Warriors who have the highest percentage of shots from three-point range.

The Cavs have been playing small and taking smart shots all season long. Their second game against Atlanta this playoff meeting saw them make the record books for scoring the most 3 point shots (25!) in an NBA game. We tend to overlook the Cavs when we see how flashy the splash brothers can get with their outrageous shots, but the truth is that this battle is dead even. We know that there will be three’s raining down in the final—we’ll just have to wait and see which team they’ll be coming from. Whatever happens, it’s going to be a great watch for sure!

Which team is your bet to take the NBA Finals this year? Sound off with your team pride in the Comments Section!

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