Led by Shaun Livingston and Leandro Barbosa, the Golden State Warriors‘ bench dominated the reserves of the Cleveland Cavaliers, ultimately deciding the game in the Dubs' favor.
While Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson were combining for just 20 points, Golden State's backups outscored the Cavs' bench 45-10. It was impressive to watch, and it was quite historic.
That +35 bench advantage is the highest in the NBA Finals since the league went to a 16-team playoff format back in 1984. The next closest? +30, achieved by the Houston Rockets in Game 2 of the 1995 Finals.
Going even further back, it still stands alone on top.
The Warriors' bench outscored the Cavs' bench by 35 Pts, the largest bench scoring differential in the last 50 yrs. pic.twitter.com/2uBd6yJP8n
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) June 3, 2016
On top of that, their 45 points as a unit were tied for the seventh most in a Finals game during that same time span.
These graphs, made by Dan Feldman and the folks with NBC Sports, illustrate the incredible night for the Warriors' reserves.
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