There is always rivalry on display in the world of sport -- that is an undeniable and of course, unavoidable fact. No one likes a monopoly, and to have two giants (or more) duke it out against one another while swatting away the other smaller or lesser equipped teams is always exciting to watch. In the NBA, the teams of the moment would be the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors. Both of them have gone up against one another in the NBA Finals in the previous two seasons, and we could see the same happening for this coming season’s NBA finals, too.
Assuming all goes to plan for both teams at the final stage (short of winning the NBA title, of course) in the current season, things would certainly heat up with past matches still fresh the in memory of the players involved. At the moment, both the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors are purring on just fine, with their key players performing well. For instance, the Cleveland Cavaliers have a 9-1 win-loss record, topping the Eastern Conference. LeBron James is firing on all cylinders, averaging 23.4 points, 8.9 rebounds and 9.6 assists per game this season. Kevin Love is not distracted by numerous trade rumor talks going around, making it look easy in achieving a double-double with 20.4 points and 10.3 rebounds.
As for the Golden State Warriors, the humiliation received from San Antonio Spurs on opening night is but a distant and bad memory now. They have since embarked on an 8 game victory streak in the last 9 games, coming in second in the Western Conference right behind the Los Angeles Clippers. The question that goes begging now is this -- will the two rivals actually swap key players in their setup? Conventional wisdom would dictate otherwise as if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Still, there are whispers that Stephen Curry could actually make the jump over to the Cleveland Cavaliers should that rival team actually pick up the NBA trophy this season.
History does have a precedent though. Last season's playoffs saw Kevin Durant's Oklahoma City Thunder knocked out by the Golden State Warriors. During the free agency period, Durant switched his allegiance to the Golden State Warriors. Perhaps you might say that karma might come back to haunt the Golden State Warriors with Stephen Curry pulling a similar stunt.
However, would the Cavaliers allow Kyrie Irving to go in the opposite direction as Curry comes on board? Perhaps, as there are still many more different details to iron out. The thought of Stephen Curry teaming up with LeBron James is a tantalizing one, as one can only imagine the kind of havoc which can be wrecked in opposition defenses. With Stephen Curry joining up with the Cleveland Cavaliers, the popularity of both him and LeBron James would shoot through the roof even more, making Cleveland is the most popular American city for the year due to its sporting achievements. Only time will tell, so stay tuned!
