The Cleveland Cavaliers (57-25) and the Golden State Warriors (73-9) begin their best-of-7 series tonight at Oracle Arena in Oakland. This matchup is what the basketball world wanted. It’s a revenge matchup of last year’s finals foes. It features the two best teams in the National Basketball Association. We have the first Unanimous MVP versus The Guy Who Probably Should Have Been MVP…it’s all here in this Finals.
Are The Cavs Due?
Tension and excitement will be high as the series kicks off. No major Cleveland Sports team has won a championship in 52 years (and counting). Cleveland’s pro sports teams combined have only made it to the championship round 5 times in that span. (World Series: 1995, 1997; Super Bowl: never; NBA Championship: 2007, 2015, 2016).
Pent Up Demand
Demand for Finals basketball is high. Quicken Loans Arena, home to the Cavaliers, opens its doors during AWAY games for Cavaliers Watch Parties. For a $5 charitable donation, fans can watch the game with other fans on the arena’s Humongotron. Last year, Game 1 of the Finals sold out at Quicken Loans Arena, 2,500 miles from the game’s location. Cavs officials expect high demand again this year. It’s a nice sense of camaraderie. It’s also the team and the arena figuring out a way to generate revenue from an away game. Beer, food, and souvenirs are available for sale during the telecast.
Cleveland is a sports city known best by the moments that have contributed to its lengthy championship drought: The Catch [Willie Mays ’54]; Red Right 88 [Browns ‘81]; The Drive [John Elway and the Broncos ‘86], The Fumble [Earnest Byner ‘87], The Shot [Michael Jordan ‘89], The Move [Art Modell ‘95], Game 7 [Indians ‘97], The Sweep [Spurs ‘07], The Decision [LeBron ‘10].
It is time to throw off these negative memories and bring the city a much needed championship. The Cavs are our best hope this year, and probably next year as well. Golden State is favored in the opening game by 5.5 points, and are 2-1 favorites to win the title. But, as Honest Abe says:
