Chansky's Notebook: Efficiency And Heart

The Warriors are winners, and that will be the difference.

You want to know why the Golden State Warriors will defeat LeBron and the Cleveland Cavaliers in their NBA Finals rematch? Okay, glad you asked.

The Dubs have Stephen Curry, but they also have some of the most efficient offensive players – like Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes and defenders, like Andrew Bogut – in the NBA. That’s why with Curry missing three and half weeks of the playoffs, and the team falling behind 3-1 to OKC in the Western Conference championship series, the Warriors found a way to win and get back to the NBA Finals. They did it with different guys stepping up in crucial moments.

The series will be closer than last season with every game hanging in the balance. LeBron has help he did not have a year ago, with Kyrie Irving healthy and having a great season and Kevin Love giving them great stretches. James is the best all-around basketball player on the planet; an inside and outside scorer, an underrated defender and one of the most durable pros in the history of the NBA. The King is in his sixth consecutive Finals, having won twice with Miami but trying as he might to bring Cleveland its first NBA title.

While the Cavaliers won 10 straight playoff games and simply out-muscled and out-manned Toronto in the Eastern finals, the Warriors made it back with a sheer will to win. Down by 13 late in game 6 at Oklahoma City, they rallied to force a game 7 and fought back from another double-digit deficit in the win-or-go conference finale.

You may think Golden State depends on its outside shooting, but the Warriors actually have scored more points in transition this season than by launching three-pointers. When the long bombs are not falling, Golden State stays in the game through other means, like a defense that forces run outs and easy baskets and moving the basketball like no other team.

All will be too much for LeBron, who will lose another NBA Finals, this one in heartbreaking fashion to a team with just a little more heart.