BOSTON — Be honest. When you first heard Kevin Durant could miss significant time with a knee injury, your first thought was that the Cleveland Cavaliers’ chances of winning a second straight title just got a whole lot better.
Indeed, the Cavs are a favorite to at least reach the NBA Finals. They own the Eastern Conference’s No. 1 seed despite injuries to J.R. Smith and Kevin Love, and they just added much-needed veteran depth in point guard Deron Williams and center Andrew Bogut.
But if you ask LeBron James, everyone wondering what Cavs-Golden State Warriors Part III will look like if Durant still is sidelined — or if the Warriors reach the Finals at all — is getting ahead of themselves.
“You guys are so fascinated about a Cleveland-Warriors matchup that it’s discrediting the rest of the league,” James said Wednesday before the Cavaliers’ morning shootaround at TD Garden.
“We don’t play (the Warriors)Â no more for the rest of the season. If we’re fortunate enough to even get through the East, if they’re on the other side, we’ll see what happens then.”
James and Co. will face who could be their closest competition Wednesday night in the No. 2 seed Boston Celtics. The Celtics trail the Cavs by four games in the standings but have played Cleveland close this season, losing both matchups by six points apiece.
Several other teams, namely the Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards, also could give the Cavs a run for their money, but James admitted he respects Boston for two main reasons: head coach Brad Stevens and point guard Isaiah Thomas.
“I’ve always been complimentary of Coach Stevens,” James said. “I admire what he did at Butler. He’s a great coach in our league and obviously it’s showing with this franchise.”
Stevens coached James at this year’s NBA All-Star Game, where the three-time NBA champion also played alongside Thomas. Needless to say, James has been impressed by Thomas’ career season to date.
“He’s running the team,” James said. “He’s always been able to score the ball since he was in high school. It’s been well-chronicled. But he’s running the team now, he’s putting those guys in position. Coach Stevens has definitely been a bright spot for them as well. (Thomas is) a great piece to have. He’s a competitor, he loves to compete every night, and you respect that.”
Does he respect Thomas enough to put “The Little Guy” in the NBA MVP race?
“I’m not a media guy, so it’s not for me to talk about (his MVP chances),” James replied. “I just like watching him play. Obviously, they wouldn’t be in this position without him.”
Apparently James is well aware of that position.
Thumbnail photo via Ken Blaze/USA TODAY Sports Images
