Opinion | Right Field: NBA Finals are a breath of fresh air

It's a fresh new day for the NBA Finals in so many ways. For the first time ever, the match-up between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers features two rookie head coaches.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr came out of the broadcast booth to replace another former player-turned-broadcaster-turned-coach in Mark Jackson, who was fired despite posting a .526 winning percentage. All Kerr did in his first year was lead the team to the best record in the league and the franchise's first appearance in the finals in 40 years. The Cavs' David Blatt spent the past four seasons coaching Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Israeli Premier League before being the surprise selection as Cleveland's new coach.

It does not get much fresher than either of these coaches. On the court, the Warriors are led by their 27-year-old, newly minted MVP Stephen Curry, who is now garnering renown as perhaps the best shooter in the game's history. His kryptonite in the finals has been a country boy from Maryborough in Queensland, Australia.

Despite being undrafted coming out of St Mary's College of California, Matthew Dellavedova has somehow become an overnight sensation with his punishing, fearless and relentless style of play. Throw in the fact that the Warriors have not won a title since the mid-70s while the Cavaliers have never won and we have a fresh match-up that even the most cynical can relish.

But no matter how compelling all those angles may be there is only one meaningful narrative and it is hardly fresh. LeBron James' greatness is suffocating virtually every other storyline. It's nothing new, really, it's just ridiculously pronounced this time around. As the most scrutinised athlete in the US, there is very little we do not know about LeBron. He was on the cover of Sports Illustrated at 17 while his high school basketball games were broadcast nationally on ESPN.

At 18, he was drafted by Cleveland and put that franchise on the map before leaving to play with his star-studded friends in Miami. After four years and four appearances in the finals, winning two, he returned home to Cleveland amid much fanfare with the stated goal of helping the title-starved town win its first sporting championship in 51 years.