James magical again, Cavs not counted out
Once again, LeBron James was all-around amazing, but he blew a shot to win at the end of regulation, setting his team up for another heartbreaking fall in overtime. This loss would have crushed the Cleveland Cavaliers and sent them to the coroner.
The second game of the NBA Finals was looking a lot like the first.
But this time, there was a surprising twist in the storyline. The Cavaliers are not counted out, nowhere near dead and buried, because Matthew Dellavedova was better than the league’s Most Valuable Player.
Stephen Curry was incredibly bad, and the Golden State Warriors grinded to a halt Sunday night, when they had a chance to turn out the lights on the Cavaliers but instead allowed them life.
“If the Cavs lost that, there was no way they were going to win four games in the next five against this team,” said Jeff Sherman, oddsmaker at the Westgate Las Vegas sports book.
In a Magic Johnson-type performance, James carried Cleveland to the brink and watched Dellavedova push them over the top in a 95-93 victory over Golden State that tied the series and suddenly made it even more intriguing.
There was no bad beat for underdog bettors this time. The Cavaliers, 7½-point ’dogs and around plus-300 on the money line, finally finished the job in a game they deserved to win. It was one they won with relentless defense, James’ dominance and Dellavedova’s heart.
“People like this series. It’s a lot of action. It’s definitely drawing the bettors to it,” William Hill sports book director Nick Bogdanovich said. “There were quite a few Cavaliers money-line bets. People still believe. In LeBron we trust.”
The only thing LeBron can’t be trusted with is the shot to win in regulation. But he’s doing everything else to strike legitimate fear into the heavily favored Warriors, who appeared primed to coast to a championship after the Cavaliers lost star point guard Kyrie Irving to a knee injury in Game 1.
James played 50 minutes in Game 2, totaling 39 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists. His prop total for points, rebounds and assists at William Hill books was 51, and he topped it by 15 with the help of five extra minutes.
“I guess you can’t make a number high enough,” Bogdanovich said.
The bettors are wise to bank on LeBron, who pays off without charging an ATM fee. His prop for points was bet from 31½ to 33½ at the Westgate.
Dellavedova started in place of Irving, but it was James who ran the point for a majority of the game. He drew defenders, rifled precision passes to open shooters and attacked the rim without getting superstar treatment from the officials.
James was hacked by Andre Iguodala on a baseline shot attempt, but Tony Brothers swallowed his whistle, and it almost cost Cleveland the game. What the NBA does not need is an officiating controversy in the Finals.
“How could you not call that slap on the arm?” Sherman said. “I couldn’t believe some of those missed calls at the end.”
Dellavedova, an undrafted free agent from Saint Mary’s, bailed out the Cavaliers and the refs by grabbing an offensive rebound and sinking the winning free throws with 10.1 seconds to go. And on the other end, he helped harass Curry into shooting an air-ball that summed up his nightmare Sunday.
“Curry had a horrible game,” Bogdanovich said. “Golden State is not blowing anyone out.”
The total was bet down to 199½ from 202, and it was a dead under. The Cavaliers imposed their will on the Warriors, who were only in the game because of Klay Thompson, who scored 34 points on 14-for-28 shooting.
Curry, who was off the from the start, hit 2 of 15 3-pointers, with Golden State finishing 8 of 35 from long range. He did not bring his daughter or the Burger King mascot to the postgame news conference and there was no joking around after this debacle. Now, the series is getting serious.
James made a phenomenal cross-court pass to J.R. Smith, who hit a 3 to put Cleveland ahead 62-56 late in the third, a quarter in which the Warriors were held to 14 points.
After 3s by Smith and Dellavedova, James buried one from deep to stake the Cavaliers to an 83-72 lead with 3:14 remaining. It looked like a dagger, but Curry and Thompson ignited a furious rally to force overtime.
James has only one day to rest before the series shifts to Cleveland, which opened as a 1-point favorite in Game 3 on Tuesday.
“LeBron’s going to be worn down,” Bogdanovich said.
And that’s the question going forward. How far can James, who has attempted 73 field goals in the first two games, carry the Cavaliers?
“I would expect them to split in Cleveland,” Sherman said. “I think it was over in five games if the Cavaliers had lost (Sunday). Now, it could get drawn out. That’s all I think this is going to do is extend it to Warriors in seven.
“LeBron is piling the minutes up and carrying such a big load, which is why he’s fading at the end.”
Luckily for LeBron, he could lean on Dellavedova when it counted. The Cavaliers are not dead yet.
Las Vegas Review-Journal sports betting columnist Matt Youmans can be reached at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907. He co-hosts “The Las Vegas Sportsline” weekdays at 2 p.m. on ESPN Radio (1100 AM). Follow him on Twitter: @mattyoumans247.