3 observations from Game 1 of the NBA Finals

The Golden State Warriors took a 1-0 series lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers with a 104-89 victory at Oracle Arena on Thursday. Here are three things that stood out in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

Draymond Green, point forward

If the Cavaliers’ game plan was to force the ball out of Stephen Curry’s hands, it worked.

Through a series of blitzes, traps, and switches in a slower-paced game, the Cavs limited Curry to 74 total touches and just 15 field-goal attempts in 36 minutes of action, while forcing the reigning two-time MVP into five turnovers. To put that in perspective, Curry averaged 101 touches and 22 field-goal attempts per game in the Warriors’ last three wins of the West finals.

Unfortunately for Cleveland, the Warriors were able to overcome Curry’s off night largely by running their offense through Draymond Green.

Green touched the ball more than any other Warrior on Thursday (86 touches) and his 69 total passes were 11 more than anyone else who played in Game 1, including 20 more than any of his teammates. In addition, 10 of those passes resulted in either a direct assist, a secondary assist, or free throws for Golden State, while Green added 16 points himself on 16 individual possessions.

Green averaged more than seven assists per game during the regular season and recorded 13 triple-doubles, so it’s not like his playmaking abilities are a revelation. Still, considering how much attention his defensive versatility (and flailing leg) attracts, it’s sometimes easy to forget that Green is also one of the more dynamic offensive bigs in the game.

Livingston's easy offense

There aren’t many guards in the league who can put together a 20-point game on 12 shooting possessions without attempting a single 3-pointer, as Shaun Livingston did Thursday. Of course, there also aren't many guards who can take advantage of a size mismatch in the post, as Livingston so often does with almost automatic results.

Cleveland simply had no answer for Livingston inside, and it’s tough to think of a single Cavs guard who can adequately defend Livingston’s length, save perhaps Iman Shumpert. It’s unlikely that Livingston, who entered Game 1 without a 20-point playoff performance to his name, will get as great an opportunity once Curry and Klay Thompson return to form, but it’s worth monitoring how early and often Steve Kerr turns to his 6-foot-7 guard in Game 2 until the Cavs prove they can stop him.

Related: Curry, LeBron praise Livingston's career-high performance

Where was Cavs' best lineup?

Through three rounds of the 2016 playoffs, 70 different lineups had logged at least 20 minutes together, and none had performed better than the Cavs quintet of Matthew Dellavedova, Iman Shumpert, Richard Jefferson, LeBron James, and Channing Frye.

That bizarre unit of James and a collection of reserves became the Eastern Conference equivalent of Golden State's small-ball Death Lineup (which has actually struggled this spring), outscoring East foes by an average of 46.6 points per 100 possessions. It was also Cleveland's second-most used combination (70 minutes through three rounds) after the team's starting five, so it was particularly puzzling to watch Tyronn Lue avoid it in Game 1.

The five-man unit in question logged less than one minute together in Thursday's loss, with 13 Cavs lineups seeing more floor time, according to NBA.com.

With the prospect of going down 2-0 and then needing to beat a 73-win team four times in five games on the horizon, Lue's likely to turn to his quirky,yet effective lineup at some point in Game 2.