NBA Finals Game Six, Lance Stephenson Traded

The NBA Finals resume tonight at 8:00 pm CDT from Cleveland, where the Cavs will look to stay alive and force a game seven. The Warriors seem to have righted the ship after going small and opening up the lane with Andre Iguodala in the starting lineup and no traditional center. Steph Curry found his shot in game five, making seven threes and finishing with 37 points, including several big makes in the fourth quarter when the Warriors pulled away.

Meanwhile, the Cavs have devolved into a one man show, with LeBron James carrying an absolutely massive load, doing everything for his team and keeping them in the series. It's been a spectacular, Herculean effort that appears likely to go unrewarded as the Cavs simply lack the depth of talent that the healthy Warriors bring. One final stand in Cleveland tonight. It would be awesome if we got a game seven. I'm not counting on it.

The Hornets have traded Lance Stephenson to the Clippers for Matt Barnes and Spencer Hawes, a deal I have trouble understanding from Charlotte's side. They signed Stephenson to a three year deal last summer at $9M per, but only the first two years were guaranteed. He was terrible in Charlotte. But with only a one year commitment, why not keep him around to see if he can re-find his game? At worst, he's the same as he was this year, but plays less. Instead, they traded him for two guys who aren't moving the needle, and are stuck with Hawes' contract, which has three more years to run. With the cap increase coming next summer, it probably doesn't matter all that much, but still, taking on unnecessary and likely unhelpful commitments isn't good business.

It's probably a worthwhile flyer for the Clippers, though it's arguable whether Stephenson will be as good as Barnes, who costs significantly less. Still, he showed in Indiana a versatility and playmaking ability that Barnes doesn't have, and if he can get back to being that player, he helps the Clippers. It does make them awfully small on the wing, however, with their main wing guys being more shooting guard sized than small forward size, so that might be a concern for them.

Elsewhere, the USWNT plays its final group game at the Women's World Cup tonight at 7:00 pm CDT. A win against Nigeria and they will top the group, though they could also win the group with a draw or even a loss depending on the result of the other game. They need to go out and play good soccer and get a win, though. It hasn't been a great display from them over the first two games, and they need to get into a groove heading into the knockout stages.

Darren Wolfson spoke with Rashad Vaughn briefly about his workout with the Timberwolves yesterday. You can see the interview here.

Also from Wolfson, this tweet, which just cracks me up:

By the way, I do believe there was #Twolves interest in having Mike Malone help out next season in some capacity. Man knows defense well.

— Darren Wolfson (@DWolfsonKSTP) June 15, 2015

You think if Pop left the Spurs, Flip might think about bringing him aboard as as assistant? Maybe Pat Riley is looking to get back onto the bench, he could help out in practice. Think Tom Thibodeau would take a video coordinator job?

Today in History

1567: Mary Queen of Scots imprisoned in Scotland
1784: Holland forbids orange clothes. 
1815: Napoleon defeats Prussians at Ligny
1879: Gilbert & Sullivan's HMS Pinafore premieres in NYC
1903: Ford Motor Company incorporates
1903: Pepsi Cola Company forms
1960: "Psycho" premieres in New York
1961: Dancer Rudolf Nureyev defects in Paris
1975: Bucks trade Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to Lakers

Today's musical birthday is Tupac Shakur, born in 1971 (d. 1996)