Volume 5: Unrivaled

The Warriors were on offense. Jaylen Brown took the ball and went at Isaiah Thomas again, pulling up for another jumper. Thomas could not contest it. Brown had come out scorching hot and knocked it down easily, 7:7. Neither side had committed many fouls. The Cavaliers' defensive intensity was very low, with barely any physical contact, while the Warriors had no chance to engage physically because the Cavaliers were all jump shots, aside from James bulldozing his way inside and drawing several free throws. On the other end, Isaiah Thomas isolated with the ball. Jaylen Brown stayed fully locked in and kept up with Thomas's footwork. Thomas could not find an opening and forced a fading jumper, which missed. On the next possession, James ran a pick-and-roll with Love. Looney dropped back while Wiggins fought over the screen. James drove into the paint, turned and passed back to Love, who caught the ball and fired. The three-pointer went in, 3:3. Love immediately popped out beyond the arc. James whipped the ball over, and Love shot as soon as he caught it. Looney's contest was a step late, and the three splashed through, 10:7. In the second quarter, both teams brought on their bench units. The Cavaliers' defense showed no improvement, and without James driving the offense, Isaiah Thomas was left to lead the team alone and was swarmed by the Warriors' double-teams. The stands were packed to capacity. The Christmas Day showdown was about to begin. On the next possession, Curry lobbed the ball to Antetokounmpo. Antetokounmpo backed Crowder down in the post, spun, and missed the layup. December 25th, 7:30 p.m., Chase Center. The current Cavaliers were increasingly strong offensively and weak defensively. They could no longer even reliably crush weaker teams, and their record had slipped to third