"This is blasphemy" - Stephen A. Smith gets irked after Booger McFarland compares LA Rams vs Bengals to the lop-sided showdown between Warriors and Cavs in 2017
The rivalry between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers defined the second half of the 2010s in the NBA. With the Los Angeles Rams facing the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI, Booger McFarland compared the matchup to the Warriors-Cavaliers and Stephen A. Smith is not having any of it.
In an episode of ESPN's "First Take," McFarland was a guest to discuss the upcoming Super Bowl matchup between the Rams and Bengals. Booger decided to compare it in basketball terms to Stephen A. by saying that it felt like the Warriors vs. Cavaliers back in 2017.
"Star power. Odell Beckham Jr., Cooper Kupp, Aaron Donald, Matthew Stafford. I'm comparing them to a Hollywood team because they are top-heavy. They've got some of the best talent in football, and who are they going against? Joe Burrow coming from Ohio," McFarland said.
"This is blasphemy," Smith replied.
It was a good analogy by Booger McFarland because the Rams are currently stacked offensively like the the Dubs were back in 2017. The Bengals are from Ohio, just like the Cavaliers, with Joe Burrow and LeBron James as their superstars. However, Stephen A. Smith explained why it was a blasphemous comparison.
"The Rams walked into the season after acquiring Matthew Stafford with the pieces that they had even after acquiring Odell Beckham Jr., particularly once Robert Woods goes down. We still looked at them and we said, "Tampa." We said, "Green Bay." The moment KD announced that he was going to the Bay to join Steph and Klay, the basketball world said, "Season's over,'" Smith explained.
Stephen A. spoke facts since Golden State was instantly the favorite to win it all in 2017. They went on to defeat Cleveland 4-1, then followed it up with a 4-0 sweep in their rematch the following year.
Golden State Warriors vs Cleveland Cavaliers in four straight NBA Finals
From 2015 to 2018, the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers faced each other four times in the NBA Finals. It's been the greatest rivalry in the NBA for the past decade, but it was a lopsided one.
Golden State won in 2015 before dispatching the Cavaliers in a total of nine games in 2017 and 2018. The addition of Kevin Durant to the likes of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green was too much even for someone as dominant as LeBron James.
However, the Cavaliers did have the best victory among their four NBA Finals matchups. LeBron led the Cavaliers to the greatest comeback in the history of the league. With Golden State up 3-1, Cleveland battled back to win Game 7 to give the city its first championship in more than 50 years.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are your 2016 NBA Champions.
With win, Cavs gets 1st-ever NBA title. https://t.co/2jfoUfORXg