Former Cavaliers big man Channing Frye isn’t shy to show confidence in his championship-winning team from the 2016 NBA Finals.
In an interview feature by Bleacher Report highlighting “How 2016 Cavaliers Made the Greatest Comeback in NBA History,” Frye said it didn’t matter who they played in Game 5, the Cavaliers were going to win the game.
“I am a firm believer that even if Draymond [Green] was there, we would have still put that belt on ’em,” Frye said. “Unless he would have grown two more arms, and 6 more inches, no.”
It’s been 10 years since Cleveland ignited the infamous 3-1 Warriors blown lead in the NBA Finals.
In that game, LeBron James and Kyrie Irving each had 41 points and combined for nine 3-pointers.
Green was suspended for Game 5 after picking up his fourth flagrant foul of the postseason, forcing him to watch next door from the old Oracle Arena at the Oakland Coliseum because he was not permitted to be in the building.
With no Green on the court, the Cavaliers went on to win, 112-97. Cleveland then won Game 6, 115-101, and then Game 7, 93-89, making it one of the greatest series comebacks in NBA history and bringing LeBron James his first NBA title as a member of the Cavaliers.
Frye recalled one of the advantages Cleveland had was when Andrew Bogut and Festus Ezeli went down in the series, making it easier for them to attack the rim and play more physically.
With Golden State having no big man on the court and no Green, who was the Defensive Player of the Year the season before, it gave James and Irving a major advantage on the court.
“I don’t know what happened with those boys; they went to the moon,” Frye said. “And I said, watching that firsthand, ‘Hell, no.’ “
Frye went on to compare the speed that James and Irving were playing as similar to a character in an anime.
“Total respect to Golden State, but it was like two sword fighters,” Frye said. “You just hear the noise, and then they’re over there, and you’re like ‘Damn, when did that happen?’ “
