Warriors face Cavaliers in NBA Finals rematch: 5 role players to watch

It's not all about the superstars

This year's NBA Finals matchup has no shortage of stars. Stephen Curry and LeBron James are the biggest names in the game. Klay Thompson and Kyrie Irving can erupt for 40 points at any time. Draymond Green and Kevin Love are two of the top power forwards on the planet. We've learned by now, though, that role players are capable of swinging a series. Here are five to watch with Game 1 coming up on Thursday:

The Cleveland Cavaliers big man played his way into a five-year, $82 million contract in last year's playoffs, and, now more than ever, he'll be asked to earn his money. You know how Oklahoma City Thunder center Steven Adams managed to make himself a threat on the pick-and-roll, crash the glass, switch onto smaller players and cover all sorts of ground on defense in the conference finals? Thompson has to do his best to do all of that in the Finals. At least he's done it before.

Last year, he averaged 10 points and 13 boards in 40.8 minutes on this stage. With Love healthy, it's hard to see him getting that kind of playing time now, but he will need to make his minutes count. The Golden State Warriors are vulnerable against great offensive rebounding teams, and that is Thompson's best skill. Starting next to Love in the frontcourt, he might be asked to guard Green on the perimeter and be ready to switch onto Curry. Sounds easy, right?

In the single biggest game of this NBA season, Warriors coach Steve Kerr put Andre Iguodala in the starting lineup and asked him to guard Kevin Durant for 43 minutes. Iguodala's reward: he'll get to spend the rest of his 12th year in the league guarding James. It wouldn't be shocking if Kerr opted to start Iguodala for the entire series this time -- last year, that adjustment came in Game 4, and he wound up winning Finals MVP.

Iguodala's main task will be tougher, as Cleveland is ten times the offensive team than it was back then. With shooters surrounding James, sending help will be dangerous. That means that Iguodala's ability to make James work while staying out of foul trouble will be even more crucial than it was before. It would be nice if he managed to repeat his 40-percent shooting from 3-point range, too.

Iguodala's (and Golden State assistant coach Luke Walton's) college teammate has emerged as the most important Cavalier outside of the Big 3 in the playoffs. Against the Atlanta Hawks and Toronto Raptors, Frye averaged 10.9 points in 17.6 minutes, shooting 63.5 percent and 58.1 percent from 3-point range. Not bad for a guy who didn't even get on the floor in Cleveland's first game against the Detroit Pistons.

The Warriors' "death lineup" has crushed Cleveland before, but can Golden State deal with the Cavaliers' counterpart? With Frye and James in the frontcourt alongside Matthew Dellavedova, Iman Shumpert and Richard Jefferson, Cleveland has scored 133.2 points per 100 possessions while allowing 86.6 points per 100 possessions in 70 postseason minutes. Frye has punished any player who has failed to close out on him at the 3-point line, but against the Warriors, he will also need to defend and rebound well enough to keep this lineup viable.

The big man's 15-point, 14-rebound performance in Game 5 against the Thunder is fresh in our memories, but he doesn't need to put up those numbers to affect a game. Golden State wouldn't be here without his rebounding, paint protection and screening. When he's on the court against Love and Thompson, it is going to be a battle near the basket. The Cavs need to be aware of his passing, too -- if they fall asleep on cutters, he will find them from the high post.

Much was made of Bogut's sacrifice last year. When he was removed from the rotation for the last three games, he did not complain. It is possible that this happens again, but this is a totally different series. You would think that Kerr would want him out there to neutralize Thompson and help on James' drives. This is what Bismack Biyombo did so effectively in the Toronto Raptors' two wins in the Eastern Conference finals.

Maybe he doesn't even play. In these playoffs, he barely has. Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue has not needed a 7-foot-1, 275-pound center so far, instead relying on Thompson for dirty work and Love and Frye for spacing. Lue said Tuesday that he plans to push the pace, so it doesn't seem like he's planning to give Mozgov major minutes. It is not difficult, however, to envision that plan changing.

Oklahoma City has been the only team to even stay close against Golden State while going small. Generally, if you want to compete with the Warriors, the best plan is to limit their transition opportunities and dominate the glass. Thompson is a workhorse, but he does not have Mozgov's sheer size. If the "death lineup" is running the Cavs off the court, maybe Lue will shift his strategy. That could be an opportunity for Mozgov, who had four big offensive games in last year's Finals.

Tristan Thompson could be key in this Finals rematch. USATSI