NBA Finals: Shaquille O’Neal issues LeBron James major warning about Warriors
LEBRON JAMES will be powerless in stopping the Golden State Warriors with his new-look Cleveland Cavaliers cast in the NBA Finals.
That’s according to four-time NBA champion Shaquille O’Neal, who believes the Warriors will have too much firepower for Cleveland.
There are several players in Cleveland’s roster entering their first NBA Finals after they underwent two major squad changes in the past 12 months.
Only James, J.R. Smith, Tristan Thompson, Kyle Korver and Kevin Love remain from last year’s NBA Finals squad.
And they take on a Warriors side which has barely changed from last year’s line-up, giving Kevin Durant another year to bed in alongside Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.
Golden State are the overwhelming favourites to defend their crown and make it a third win over Cleveland in four years.
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The NBA Finals get underway Friday morning (2am BST) and O’Neal believes Golden State will make a fast start to put them in full control.
“I’m going to have to go with Golden State,” O’Neal said.
“They have the experience, they have better players, they still get the three superstars.
“A lot of their guys didn’t play excellent, superstar basketball this last series but this series is over. Now you can go home, be happy, recharge your focus and seven new games to be a champion.
“Those guys will probably be playing with more confidence.
“Golden State are playing at home so they’ll be looking to put Cleveland away.
“They’re going to be looking to take advantage of Cleveland’s new cast.”