NBA Week 13 Rewind: Warriors put Cavaliers in their place

With the Cleveland Cavaliers in a state of disarray and the Golden State Warriors dismantling them recently, the reigning NBA champions have reminded the kings of the East just where they stand.

In the NBA’s 13th week, the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers were nearly perfect polar opposites of each other. The Warriors were a perfect 3-0 while the Cavs looked underwhelming on their way to going 2-2, the Warriors got their head coach back on the same night the Cavs fired theirs, and ultimately, when it came to their contest on Monday night, it wasn’t even close. With a 132-98 win, the Warriors well and truly put the Cavs in their place.

We’ll get onto the game in a moment, but with the general disarray of the Cavs after firing David Blatt and hiring former assistant Tyronn Lue to replace him, they clearly had a problem in the organization. Whether it was based on LeBron James’ fit with Blatt, locker room issues or the general matters of chemistry and respect with the head coach, something was wrong.

After suffering an embarrassing 96-83 loss to the Chicago Bulls to end their week, things still aren’t on the rise at the moment in Cleveland. A wakeup call on Monday clearly wasn’t enough. They need some time to adjust with Lue, especially if they can’t compete with a Bulls squad who was without Joakim Noah and 4-6 in their last 10 games.

There’s still about half the season for the Cavs to compose themselves, though, and it’s hard to think that they won’t win the East and return to the Finals. However, when looking at their off-court problems, the imperfect fit of and poor defense of Kevin Love as a $113 million third option, and the way they were completely dismantled by the Warriors, they don’t look fit to compete with either Golden State or San Antonio.

At least at the moment, the kings of the West are the class of the NBA.

Well, there’s plenty more to talk about from around the league last week. From the Ish Smith effect in Philly to the fan favorite that is Boban Marjanovic in San Antonio, there’s a lot more in this week’s NBA Rewind.

For those who are new to the series, here are the segments that are featured:

• The key games and results of the week
• Who’s heating up?
• Who’s struggling?
• The best highlights of the week
• A weekly rookie watch
• Under-the-radar players to look out for

So, with Finals rematches and plenty of other action to talk about, let’s get started.

Next: The Key Games and Results of Week 13