“The recipe to success, possessed by all successful teams have three characteristics: they play unselfish; they play together, and they play hard.”
– Larry Brown (Ex-American Basketball Player & Coach)
Basketball is a sport that personifies the power of team-spirit. The rivalry between legendary clubs and players is common. An epic example of an ever going rivalry is Warriors vs Cavaliers.
Both squads have faced each other in the NBA finals four times consecutively. The fans got to witness some magical moves and friction between the players of two clubs showcasing the competition they carry within. These action-packed final matches have only intensified the rivalry between the clubs and placed them against each other as the biggest competitor.
Something which is even more interesting about this rivalry is that the fans have also been divided into two groups where one is in the support of Warriors and the others prefer the Cavaliers.
Golden State Warriors vs Cavs:
The Fantasy Craze:
These two squads are extremely popular in the NBA fantasy premier league landscape. The supporters cherry-pick their hot favorites from either of the teams to form a virtual squad and enjoy the championship along with earning lucrative rewards.
LeBron James and Stephen Curry are considered as the most loved faces of the Cavs and Warriors, respectively and people build robust virtual teams by picking them to play the fantasy basketball matches.
Aren’t You Excited To Walk Through The Enthralling Rivalry In Detail? But How about Getting A Brief Idea Of Each Of These Clubs First?
The Golden State Warriors:
The Tale Of Starting From The Lowest To Becoming The NBA’s Hot Favorite
The Golden State Warriors is a San Francisco-based American basketball team whose journey is no less than a wheel of fortune. Since its inception in 1946, from moving to other places and changing its names as well as the owners the squad has seen it all.
The club grabbed the inaugural 1946–47 BAA season title under the captaincy of “Jumping Joe” Joe Fulks and after this, the squad has never turned back. In total, the Golden State has won the NBA championships five times in the year 1956, 1975, 2015, 2017, and 2018.
Cleveland Cavaliers:
One Of The Most Exciting Squads That Began Their Journey As An Expansion NBA Team
One of the main reasons why Cavs is considered as one of the most exciting and heartbreaking teams is that they joined in the 1970s as an expansion NBA squad and from there the boys have risen like anything.
Although, the inaugural season in their home grounds was one of the worst for them the squad has grown season by season and earned the spot of one of the best NBA basketball teams.
LeBron James has been one of the top-most players for the Cavs and managed to let the squad win many games by showcasing his phenomenal scoring skills. Cleveland Cavaliers have won the NBA title in 2016 and two of the team’s coaches Bill Fitch and Mike Brown have grabbed the coach of the year award in 1976 and 2009 respectively.
Now, Should We Explore The Most-Talked Rivalry: Warriors vs Cavaliers?
The rivalry between the Cavs and the Warriors is one of the hot topics in the NBA landscape. Both the squads came head-to-head many times since they have joined the NBA leagues in 1970. The rivalry started gaining traction in the 2014-2015 season.
There’s No Harm In Knowing A Little About The Pre-2014 Era Also, Right?
Before the intense rivalry span that began in 2014, Warriors were having an upper hand against the Cavs with 37-22 points from 1970-91. However, from 1992-91 the latter came in the front seat by winning 10 games back to back and reducing the lead to 37-32.
Both the squads came against each other in many games when LeBron first started playing for the Cavs in the 2000s. He left the squad from 2010-14 and this proved to be a lottery for the Warriors. As a result, the Warriors were leading the scoreboard with 53–50 points at the end of the 2013-14 season. Finally, Let’s Walk Through The Real Rivalry Period That Started From 2014 & Is Still Ongoing. Excited Or Not?
2014-15: A Season Full Of Thrill And Struggle
The season 2014-15 was lucky for the Cavs as they were managed to get entry to the finals in spite of beginning the season with a poor record of 19-20. However, the Warriors started with a bang of 21-2 and became the shining star of the season from the beginning itself and the entire credit of the great start went to Stephen Curry.
The finals of the season were the most exciting thing to watch as both squads lost just five games combined in the first three levels of the playoffs. Also, for the first time in the NBA history Cavs and Warriors both were mentored by the rookie head coach David Blatt and Steve Kerr. After a lot of tussle like players getting injured, games going into overtime and all of that, eventually, the Warriors managed to grab the title.
2015-16: The Season That Left Everyone Wonderstruck
On one hand, the Warriors started the season with an amazing 24-0 which was a record in NBA history of starting the season with most wins that too without any defeat. Also, three of their players Draymond Green, Curry, and Thompson won all-star selections. On the other hand, the Golden State broke the Chicago Bulls record (72-10) of 1995-96 by winning 73 matches.
The highlight of the season was the finals where the Golden State won games 1 and 2 but the Cavs triumphed the third match. The fight kept going on and in the end, the Cleveland Cavaliers won the title while the fans got to witness some of the most amazing moves and kicks of their lives.
2016-17: It’s All About The Ultimate Warrior Kevin Durant
In 2016 the Golden State got another basketball prodigy in the form of Durant who is an American professional player and is considered as one of the key reasons behind the entire season turning in favor of the Warriors.
The Golden State won the finals with 4-1 and took their first-ever NBA trophy home. Durant, of course, emerged as the new star of the game and Steph Curry again proved to be one of the most valuable assets for the Warriors.
2017-18: Once Again The Warriors Steal The Show & Durant Was The Showstopper
The major highlight of this season’s finals was that the first time in NBA history the same two squads faced each other four years consecutively. On one hand, for the Cavs, it was their fourth successive appearance in the NBA finals and fifth overall but for the Warriors, it was only their fourth consecutive NBA finals trip, both great by the way!
The Golden State won the series by 4-0 where all the four games were action-packed and full of drama for the fans. Kevin Durant exhibited phenomenal skills for the Warriors and as always LeBron James was the apple of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ eyes.
Had A Lot On The Game’s Front? Excited To Get An Idea Of The Heroes Behind The Scenes? Let’s Get Rolling
The rivalry of the Golden State Warriors vs Cavaliers is evident in the aggressive performances of both squads. Irrespective of how many matches each team has played against each other to date there are a couple of players who have proved to be the masterminds behind these remarkable moments. Let’s get a brief idea of a few of these gems:
I. LeBron James
James is one of the biggest weapons Cavaliers had against the Golden State in all matches between Warriors vs Cavaliers. His shooting skills took a match to some other level altogether and he proved to be the man of the match for the Cavs on multiple occasions.
II. Stephen Curry
The NBA Cleveland vs Golden Statestory can’t be completed without the mention of one person who is Curry. He has been the ladder who let the Golden State climb the stairs to victory in many matches where both the squads came head-to-head.
III. Kevin Durant
Again a gem from the Warriors Squad who is believed to be the only reason why his team grabbed the NBA title. Kevin is famous for his amazing scoring ability and agility. That’s the reason why the Warriors proudly flaunted him until he decided to leave the squad in 2019 to begin a new journey with Brooklyn Nets.
IV. Anderson Varejão
This basketball legend must get a special mention as he has got an opportunity to play for both the Cavaliers as well as the Warriors. Also, he performed excellently for both the teams and exhibited his best game.
After getting a glimpse of the Warriors vs Cavaliers rivalry it’s clear that both the teams are basketball powerhouses and each one of them special in their own space. Cherry-picking one of these two would be unfair as both have shown phenomenal games at different situations that helped them earn not only the titles but the respect and love from the fans.
