Everyone remembers the block. Everyone remembers Kyrie Irving’s cold-blooded triple over Steph Curry in Game 7. But if you actually go back and look at the 2016 NBA Finals Game 1, the vibes were totally different. It wasn't about the superstars. Honestly, it was about the guys you usually see on a 15-second Gatorade commercial during the timeout.
The Golden State Warriors walked into Oracle Arena as the 73-win juggernaut. They were supposed to steamroll the Cleveland Cavaliers. And they did win the first game, 104-89. But the weird part? Steph Curry and Klay Thompson combined for only 20 points. Think about that for a second. The greatest shooting duo in the history of the sport basically had a collective "off night" on the biggest stage, and they still blew the Cavs out by 15.
It was a strange, frantic game that set a tone nobody expected.
The Shaun Livingston Masterclass Nobody Saw Coming
If you watched the 2016 NBA Finals Game 1 live, you probably spent most of the second half screaming at the TV because Shaun Livingston looked like Michael Jordan in the mid-range. He was 8-of-10 from the floor. He finished with 20 points. For a guy who had a career-threatening knee injury years prior, seeing him rise up over smaller defenders was kind of poetic.
Cleveland’s defense was so hyper-focused on stopping the "Splash Brothers" that they basically dared the Warriors' bench to beat them. Big mistake. Tyronn Lue’s strategy was clear: trap Steph, stay glued to Klay, and pray. It worked on the stars, but it left the middle of the floor wide open for Livingston’s high-release jumper.
The Warriors' bench outscored the Cavaliers' bench 45-10. You just can't win a Finals game when your reserves get outscored by 35 points. It’s impossible. Leandro Barbosa came in and didn't miss a shot. 5-of-5. Even Andre Iguodala, the reigning Finals MVP at the time, was everywhere. He did the "dirty work" that doesn't always show up in a box score but makes every coach in America drool.
Why Cleveland Looked So Out of Sync
The Cavs came into this series rolling. They had blitzed through the Eastern Conference. But the 2016 NBA Finals Game 1 felt like a cold shower. LeBron James was great—23 points, 12 rebounds, 9 assists—but he looked tired by the fourth quarter. Kyrie Irving had 26, but it took him 22 shots to get there.
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There was this weird lack of ball movement. Cleveland kept falling into the trap of playing "hero ball." You’d see LeBron or Kyrie pound the rock for 18 seconds and then heave a contested jumper. Against a defense as disciplined as Golden State’s, that’s just suicide. Kevin Love struggled too. He had 17 points and 13 boards, which looks good on paper, but he was a massive liability on the defensive end whenever the Warriors forced him into a switch.
Steve Kerr knew exactly how to exploit that. He ran the "Death Lineup" and forced Love to guard the perimeter. It wasn't pretty.
The Turning Point in the Fourth
The game was actually close for a while. Cleveland trailed by only four points at the end of the third quarter. Then, the wheels just fell off.
A 15-0 run by the Warriors' second unit basically ended the night before Curry even had to check back in. That’s the psychological dagger. Imagine being LeBron James, playing 40 hard minutes, and looking over at the opposing bench to see Steph Curry laughing and chewing on his mouthguard while his teammates extend the lead.
That 15-0 run was sparked by Livingston and Iguodala. It wasn't flashy. It was just smart basketball. High screens, back-door cuts, and hitting the open man. The Oracle crowd was deafening.
Key Stats That Defined the Night
The rebounding battle was surprisingly even, but the turnovers killed Cleveland. They gave it up 17 times. When you give the 73-win Warriors extra possessions, you’re basically asking for a blowout.
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Also, look at the shooting percentages. The Warriors shot nearly 50% from the field. Cleveland was stuck at 38%. You aren't winning many games in the modern NBA shooting under 40%, especially not against a team that transitions from defense to offense faster than anyone in history.
The Draymond Green Factor
We have to talk about Draymond. Before all the technical fouls and the suspension drama that would eventually change the series, Draymond Green was the heart of the 2016 NBA Finals Game 1. He had 16 points, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists. He was the primary playmaker while Steph was being hounded.
He was also the guy hitting the floor for loose balls. He was the guy screaming at teammates to stay in position. People love to hate him now, but in June 2016, he was arguably the most versatile player in the league not named LeBron. He defended positions one through five in a single game.
Misconceptions About Game 1
A lot of people think the Warriors won because they rained threes. Nope. They actually only made nine triples the whole game. They won because they dominated the paint and the mid-range.
Another misconception? That Cleveland played "bad." Honestly, they played okay for 36 minutes. The narrative that they were "washed" or "outmatched" started immediately after this game, but people forgot that the Cavs were actually leading at various points in the first half. It was a game of runs, and Golden State just happened to have the last, most violent one.
What This Game Taught Us for the Long Haul
Looking back, Game 1 was a bit of a "fool's gold" moment for the Warriors. It made them feel invincible. It made them think they could beat the Cavs even if their stars weren't clicking.
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For Cleveland, it was a wake-up call. They realized they couldn't win by playing isolation basketball. They needed more from JR Smith (who was virtually invisible in Game 1 with only 3 points) and they needed to find a way to make the Warriors' bench work harder.
This game is a prime example of why depth matters in the playoffs. Usually, rotations shorten and the stars take over. But Golden State's "Strength in Numbers" slogan wasn't just marketing garbage. In the 2016 NBA Finals Game 1, it was the literal reason they won.
Actionable Takeaways for Basketball Students
If you’re a coach or a player looking at this game as a case study, here is what you should focus on:
- Verticality and Spacing: Watch how Shaun Livingston uses his height. He doesn't need to be fast if he can get to his spot and shoot over the top.
- Defensive Switching: Study how the Warriors handled the LeBron/Kyrie pick-and-roll. They didn't always switch; they hedged and recovered with insane speed.
- Bench Preparation: Barbosa and Livingston were ready to go from the jump. Staying mentally locked in while sitting for 10 minutes is a skill.
- Shot Selection: Notice the difference in "quality of shot" between the two teams in the fourth quarter. One team was searching for the best shot; the other was searching for any shot.
The 2016 NBA Finals Game 1 wasn't the most iconic game of that series—that honor obviously goes to Game 7—but it was the foundation. It set the stakes. It showed the world that Golden State was deeper, but it also showed a glimmer of how Cleveland could potentially hang if they cleaned up the sloppy play.
Go back and watch the highlights of Shaun Livingston’s mid-range jumpers. It’s a clinic in fundamental basketball that rarely gets the credit it deserves in the era of the three-point revolution.
Next Steps for Deep Diving into the 2016 Finals
To truly understand the tactical shift that happened after this game, you need to analyze the defensive adjustments Tyronn Lue made for Game 3. Specifically, look at how the Cavs started attacking Steph Curry on every single defensive possession to tire him out. You can find full play-by-play breakdowns on sites like Basketball-Reference or watch "mini-movies" on the NBA's official YouTube channel to see the off-ball movement that the broadcast cameras often miss. Study the "flare screens" Golden State used to get Klay Thompson open, even when JR Smith was playing tight defense. That technical chess match is where the series was actually won and lost.