NBA Finals 2018 Schedule: Dates, TV Channel, Start Times, Game Locations For Warriors vs. Cavaliers

If you don’t like change, the 2018 NBA Finals are for you. Some of the players and coaches are different, but the overall matchup has remained the same for four straight seasons. Once again, it’ll be the Golden State Warriors against the Cleveland Cavaliers, playing in the same two locations and being broadcast on the same TV channel.

Game 1 of the NBA Finals is scheduled to take place at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California, just like it was in 2015, 2016 and 2017. LeBron James remains the world’s best basketball player, leading the Cavs against the league’s top team.

James, Kevin Love, J.R. Smith and Tristan Thompson have been part of this matchup in each season for the Cavs. Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston have been the Warriors’ mainstays.

Cleveland’s chances of beating Golden State seem to grow slimmer each year. The Warriors were the clear favorites in the first meeting when Love was out with a shoulder injury. The Cavs were underdogs again in 2016 when Golden State won a record 73 regular-season games, though Cleveland made a historic 3-1 series comeback and won their only title.

The biggest change to the rivalry came two summers ago when the Warriors signed Kevin Durant as a free agent. That made Golden State the overwhelming favorite in the 2017 NBA Finals, which the Warriors won in five games.

Two months after their third meeting in the finals, Cleveland traded Kyrie Irving for Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder, neither of which is on the team anymore. That elevated Love to the second-best Cav for the first time in the rivalry, making Cleveland’s chances of beating Golden State for a second time that much more improbable. Love shot below 40 percent from the field in both the 2016 and 2017 finals, and he’s making just 38.8 percent of his shots this postseason.

James might be playing the best basketball of his career. He’s averaging an incredible 34.0 points, 9.2 rebounds and 8.8 assists per game this postseason while shooting 54.2 percent from the field.

Golden State was finally tested in the playoffs with Durant on the roster. The Warriors needed seven games to defeat the Houston Rockets in the Western Conference Finals, coming back from a 3-2 series deficit. The defending champs went 16-1 in the 2017 playoffs, sweeping three straight rounds before beating the Cavs in five games.

The Cavs and Warriors will have two full days of rest for the majority of the series. Only Game 3 and Game 4 will be played within 48 hours of each other.

2018 NBA Finals Schedule

Game 1: Thursday, May 31 at Golden State (9 p.m. EDT, ABC)

Game 2: Sunday, June 3 at Golden State, (8 p.m. ET, ABC)

Game 3: Wednesday, June 6 at Cleveland (9 p.m. EDT, ABC)

Game 4: Friday, June 8 at Cleveland (9 p.m. EDT, ABC)

Game 5: Monday, June 11 at Golden State (9 p.m. EDT, ABC)*

Game 6: Thursday, June 14 at Cleveland (9 p.m. EDT, ABC)*

Game 7: Sunday, June 17 at Golden State (8 p.m. EDT, ABC)*