No matter what happened Thursday night in Game 1 in Oakland – hopefully it was good – and no matter what happens in the rest of the series, which, we’re crossing our fingers, will also be positive – sit back, relax and enjoy the heck out of Cavaliers-Golden State: Part 3, in the NBA Finals.
Revel in it. Immerse yourself in it. Indulge yourself full in it.
To be sure, savor every last Cavaliers basket, rebound, assist and turnover – yes, even the turnovers, as long as LeBron and the guys cause them and not commit them.
But at the same time, don’t stress out when the Warriors make good plays. And they certainly will, for they’re an outstanding squad, just like the Cavs.
In fact, the Cavs and Warriors are the first teams in NBA history – and just the fourth in pro sports history – to play for the league title in three consecutive seasons. So enjoy the experience of watching that oh-so-special, oh-so-rare feat. What happens in the games is, in a lot of ways, just icing on the cake. It really is.
Will it be disappointing if the Cavs lose?
Of course. That’s a silly question.
We take our sports – all of our sports – seriously here in this sports-crazy region. So losing hurts a lot – a whole lot.
Remember the 1980s Browns, those of first the Kardiacs era and then the Bernie Kosar era?
Remember, too, the 1990s Indians.
Neither one of them ever won it all in any year, being dragged down always by big failures in big moments.
But, all these years – even decades – later, we still think of those teams, those players and those head coaches and managers with incredible fondness because they excelled enough to put themselves into those moments. We know exactly where we were as the 1986 Browns defeated the New York Jets in double-overtime in the AFC divisional playoffs, and when the Indians in 1995 clinched a playoff spot for the first time in 41 years.
That will be the case, too, with these Cavs – only it will be even better, for unlike those Browns and Indians teams, the basketball guys late last spring won it all, breaking the city’s 52-year, major pro sports championship drought, and not our hearts.
And to think, the Cavs just may do it again. Wow! What would that be like, a Cleveland team winning back-to-back league championships for the first time since the 1954-55 Browns? It would be beyond our wildest dreams.
Regardless, like the line out of Carly Simon’s 1971 song, “Anticipation,” these are the good old days.
