It’s the final stage of the National Basketball Association (NBA) Playoffs and we’re down to the last two teams.
We’ll witness the top-seeded Golden State Warriors, starred by league MVP Steph Curry, go up against two-time champion LeBron James and the rest of the Cleveland Cavaliers in a seven-game series.
To get you all hyped up for the NBA finals, here are 8 interesting facts about the series between the Warriors and Cavs:
8. Rest or rust?
The 2015 NBA Finals will begin on Thursday (June 4) in the U.S., Friday in Manila. That’s a one-week break between the end of the Conference Finals and the finals, which is the longest layoff in the history of the league. Whether or not this break will be good or bad for both teams we’ll find out come Game 1.
7. Which rookie coach will win?
It will be the first time since 1946-47 (the NBA’s first season when the league was still known as BAA) that two rookie coaches will face each other in the championship series. Cavaliers coach David Blatt is one of the most successful coaches in the history of European basketball. Last year, Blatt led Maccabi Tel Aviv, which he steered to a 225-55 record over four years, to a championship. Steve Kerr, on the other hand, is a former NBA player and a five-time champion. In this year’s finals, however, Kerr will be gunning for another title – this time as a coach – when he goes opposite fellow first-year coach Blatt.
6. Following Riley’s footsteps
5. It’s been a while
4. What a run
3. Uncharted territory
2. That’s why he’s King
1. No wonder he’s the MVP
Curry is the first player in league history to have faced every other All-NBA First Team member in one postseason. So far the reigning MVP has beaten Davis’ Pelicans, Gasol’s Grizzlies, and Harden’s Rockets.
If the Warriors defeat James’ Cavaliers, Curry will become the first player in NBA history to achieve such a feat—facing and beating his fellow All-NBA First Team members.
