Tonight at 8:00 p.m. ET the Golden State Warriors will travel to Cleveland to take on the surging Cavaliers in a battle on TNT that can be live streamed free by clicking this link. Warriors fans can listen to the game on KNBR 680, while Cavaliers fans may do likewise by turning their dials to WTAM 1100.

The Cavs have been surging of late, and point guard Kyrie Irving is looking at this tilt as a possible NBA Finals preview.

"Everybody's going to be healthy," Irving said. "It's going to be a great test, two great teams going at it. A lot of great matchups within the game, this is what you look forward to as a competitor." Irving will have his hands full against his Golden State counterpart Stephen Curry, a leading contender for the 2014-15 MVP award.

Curry enters play averaging 23.8 points, 7.9 assists and 4.6 rebounds. Curry's also stepped up his play on the defensive end, averaging a career-high 2.2 steals. Some of the counting stats are slightly lower than past marks, but Curry's PER stands at a career-best 28, and he's posted a 62 percent true shooting percentage.

LeBron James is creeping back into the MVP chase as well, and helping to anchor a Cavaliers defense that has improved by leaps and bounds as the season has worn on. According to James, that defense is more critical to Cleveland's success than anything else.

"Defense is our mark, and we understand that," James said. "When we defend at a high level, we put ourselves in a position to win every night and be successful long-term."