In June, NBA history took place. The Golden State Warriors, after winning an NBA-record 73 games in the regular season, blew a 3-1 series lead in the NBA Finals to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
At media day for Maryland men’s basketball, the players had a chance to weigh in on one of the most memorable and historic NBA Finals ever.
Junior guard Jaylen Brantley let out a chuckle over the question before giving his answer.
“I thought it was phenomenal. LeBron [James] and Kyrie [Irving] are my favorite players,” he said.
Brantley also added he was happy to see James answer some of his critics by returning to Cleveland and winning a title.
While Brantley was happy with how the series ended, other members of the team talked about their shock at the outcome. Freshmen forwards Micah Thomas and Justin Jackson both described the result of the Finals as “crazy.”
“I actually didn’t expect it,” Jackson added. Thomas went on to mention that no one had ever blown a 3-1 lead in the NBA Finals before the Warriors last season.
Meanwhile, freshman forward Joshua Tomaic talked about his unique experience of watching the Finals across the Atlantic Ocean in the Canary Islands.
Tomaic said he had to deal with the time difference between America and the Canary Islands and noted that he stayed up until 4 a.m. to catch all the games in the series.
However, the lack of sleep was worth seeing the first-ever unanimous NBA MVP and his teammates blow a 3-1 series lead.
“This one was really special,” he said. “It was, in my opinion, one of the most exciting NBA Finals that I have watched.”
