Massarotti: Game 7 A Clash Of NBA Present And Future
BOSTON (CBS) - So this is what it comes down to, after roughly 1,300 games this season and endless debate: LeBron vs. Steph. The old MVP vs. the new MVP. The driving, dishing, defense and rebounding vs. the pure, unparalleled sniping, a clash of NBA present and future.
One game. Winner take all. No excuses.
See you at Oracle.
"I'll take it. It don't matter to me," James said last of playing Game 7 on the road following Thursday night's dismantling of the Golden State Warriors in Game 6 of the NBA Finals. "Like I told you guys the other day, it's two of the greatest words in the world, and that's `Game 7,' so I'll play it anywhere."
He doesn't have a choice, of course.
But that's beside the point.
Look, let's get this out of the way: LeBron James was positively transcendental in Game 6, turning in the kind of performance that makes you sit down, shut up and applaud. James took over Game 6. Maybe he has taken over the series. And along the way, the cool Steph Curry became just Steph Curry, losing his cool in a fourth quarter meltdown that saw LeBron bark at Curry and Curry bark at officials.
Truth be told, we've never seen Curry like this. Not really. The downright silkiest player in the NBA simply lost his mouthpiece and his mind, reduced to just another frustrated man blaming the referees.
The reality? Curry and the Warriors got schooled. And he knows it.
"I've never been ejected before, so it was a weird feeling," Curry said. He added: "It was just frustration and also kind of, like you said, I thought it was kind of hilarious the way the last two fouls and me blowing up kind of unfolded, and some of the things that were said out there. So it was just kind of, like you said, it is a long walk because, one, you don't want to foul out, you don't want to be ejected, you want to be out there with your teammates. But I immediately kind of started thinking about Game 7 and just the opportunity we've got one game to win it all, and got to take advantage of it."
Say this for Steph: even now, he remains far more likable than LeBron, be it the result of his game or his humility or both. After throwing his mouth guard on the floor last night, Curry apologized to the fan whom he inadvertently hit. He acknowledged his failures. And he sounds infinitely more humble than James ever will.
That said, the rivalry between these two is very real – and getting edgier by the day. Asked about James' performance Thursday night, Curry did not shirk any of the responsibility that James so often seems to shirk, subtly thumbing his nose at LeBron in the process.
"I mean, he's had two great games to keep his team alive. You know, that's what he's supposed to do," Curry said. "I'm out there trying to do the same for my team."
So there.
Please, no more talk about Curry being 75 percent, about LeBron's inferior supporting cast. In the NBA, the team almost always takes on the personality of its star player. When James is rolling, the Cavs are unstoppable. Ditto for Curry and the Warriors.
And so now? Now they meet in Game 7, at Golden State, a home court advantage the Warriors earned with the greatest regular season in NBA history. A victory by Curry and the Warriors completes Curry's ascension as the new face of the NBA, completes a changing at the guard that seems inevitable. A victory by James puts at least a temporary stop to it all, reaffirming James' place among the true greats of all-time and as, as he might say, the best player in the world.
"We don't go one-on-one at each other a lot, but it's a pretty competitive feeling out there with the situation of playing in The Finals and playing for something special," Curry acknowledged. "So at the end of the day, seven games to figure out who is going to be holding that trophy on Sunday, you've got to love that kind of environment and that battle. So haven't enjoyed it much the last two games, but there are 48 minutes left."
And by late Sunday, there will be just a few minutes, then a few seconds.
And then we will have our answer because there will be no time at all.