>
Article snippet: After the Golden State Warriors failed to finish off the N.B.A. finals, blowing a 3-1 lead in the series, they knew they needed to get better if they wanted to go from a one-time title winner to a dynasty. So the team aggressively pursued superstar Kevin Durant in free agency. The former M.V.P. was worth every penny, leading the Warriors to their second championship in three years. Durant, who became just the sixth player in N.B.A. history to score 30 or more points in each game of a finals, had 39 in the series-clinching Game 5 victory. He proved his value all over the court with dominant play inside, great outside shooting and tenacious defense as the Warriors beat the Cavaliers 129-120. In a tear-filled interview on the court after the game, Durant said he had not slept in two days and was anxious and jittery before the game, but all of that was over now. “We prevailed,” Durant said. “We’re champions and we did it on our own floor.” Durant called James, who had 41 points, 13 rebounds and 8 assists in the loss, the only person he has looked at since 2012 in terms of competition. He also joked that they were now even in finals after James’s Miami Heat had beaten Durant’s Oklahoma City Thunder in that 2012 season. Despite the series lasting just five games, the Cavaliers put quite a scare in the Warriors by nearly winning Game 3, dominating Golden State in Game 4, and then playing them hard until the final minutes of Game 5. LeBron James averaged a triple-double ... Link to the full article to read more