OAKLAND, Calif. — Golden State Warriors assistant coach Ron Adams, who has designed defenses for more than four decades, looks at defending LeBron James as an equation.
    Finding a solution goes beyond points, assists or any common metric. Instead, the 67-year-old Adams approaches the problem like this: add up what the Warriors are willing to give up to the Cleveland Cavaliers as a whole — forget about what James does individually — and subtract it from the number of points Golden State expects to produce.
    "We're not going to react to the stat sheet when he scores if it fits into our equation of what we're trying to do," Adams said Friday, a day after James scored 44 points in Golden State's 108-100 overtime victory in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
    "There are certain things you're trying to take away from a team. And understanding that you're doing that, there are baskets that you may give up — hopefully not uncontested baskets — but there are things you know that you can be vulnerable to, and it's important that your team knows that so that you don't build frustration into your work."
    The formula has worked wonders for the Warriors in the playoffs.
    After getting past fellow All-NBA first-teamers James Harden, Marc Gasol and Anthony Davis, Golden State seemed content to let James carry Cleveland on his own in the finals opener. The Warriors, with the top-rated defense during the regular season, refused to double-team the four-time MVP while mixing up defenders on him.
    Others flashed as if they would provide help — but they never did. And King James could only do so much with limited support from his subjects, only five of whom ever scored.
    "LeBron's going to dominate the ball and make plays," said Warriors swingman Andre Iguodala, who spent more time than anybody defending him. "We have to just make it hard on him every possession. Don't give him any easy buckets, and not let anybody else get a rhythm, and that's what we're going to try to do every game we play against them."