Report: Cavs to host Warriors for Christmas Day NBA Finals rematch
Happy holidays for one of these two titans of industry
By
Zach Harper
•
1 min read
Some people may have been looking forward to a Russell Westbrook-Kevin Durant showdown on Christmas Day to highlight the NBA's holiday slate of games, but that doesn't appear to be the case for December 25. It has been reported that the Oklahoma City Thunder will first host the Golden State Warriors in February, but the Warriors have other travel plans for Christmas, according to ESPN's Marc Stein.
The Warriors will get a Finals rematch with the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers, much like we saw on Christmas Day during last season. But this time, the Cavs will get the Christmas gift of hosting the game with the Warriors heading to Cleveland for the rematch. From ESPN:
Sources say the centerpiece of the league's annual Christmas Day schedule, meanwhile, is a rematch of the NBA Finals and a repeat of the Warriors-Cleveland Cavaliers showdown from last Christmas.
But this Dec. 25 meeting, sources say, is scheduled to happen in Cleveland, allowing the reigning champion Cavaliers to spend the holiday at home. Last Christmas, Golden State was the home team as defending champion.
This should be lots of fun. Last year on Christmas Day, the Warriors met the Cavs in Oakland at Oracle Arena. They won an ugly 89-83 affair that reminded a lot of people of their slowed-down showdown in the 2015 Finals when the Warriors closed out the Cavs in six games. The Cavs would get blown out again by the Warriors in Cleveland later in January that season before meeting in the NBA Finals for the second straight season.
And we all know how that went down. The Warriors went up 3-1 in the series before Draymond Green got himself suspended for Game 5. The Cavs then became the first team in NBA history to come back from a 3-1 deficit in the NBA Finals and closed it out with an epic Game 7 victory in Oakland to secure their first championship in franchise history.
There will be even more storylines attached to the matchup this season after Kevin Durant signed with the Warriors this offseason. Now we'll get a star-studded affair of LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, Durant, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and maybe even Kevin Love on Christmas. Could this be a sign of things to come in June?
