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If LeBron James wins the Championship this year, it may go down as the single most impressive individual achievement in NBA history.
Rightfully so.
With a depleted roster decimated by injuries, James single-handedly willed his team to victory Sunday night. By not showing up on their home floor, the Golden State Warriors have given the Cleveland Cavaliers a sense of purpose, and James, a sense of destiny.
It’s actually the perfect scenario for James. Should his team lose, it would be expected. The Cavs can play free and loose. They are already heroes in Cleveland.
This makes for the worst scenario for the Warriors, who are clearly battling their own demons of NBA Finals inexperience. It really didn’t matter who they were playing last night. Instead of King James, it could have been the “Sacramento Queens,” and they still would have lost.
Even though they are at full strength, the odds are against the Warriors. James is the hero of the league in a watered down NBA Finals devoid of a full compliment of superstars, and the great stories behind them. This isn’t Kobe and Shaq vs. Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen in a historical revenge series. This is LeBron James and guys you’re just now learning their names vs. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson.
It’s good for the league if Cleveland wins the Championship.
The League wants James to win.
Do you hear that, Warriors?
What are you going to do about it?
Thompson hears the message loud and clear, which is why he showed up for Game 2 in an explosive way, scoring 34 points.
But where was Curry?
5-for-23 and a quiet 19 points?
This was more than an off-shooting night for Curry, and it was more than tough defense being played on him. Perhaps an injury or a flu and the heart of a champion not looking to make excuses may have been the explanation. He didn’t seem himself. He was far less aggressive, less emotional, less animated out there. He is going to have to rally his team and look to be far more cutthroat in the next two games in Cleveland otherwise this is going to be a short series.
If you’re the Warriors, you need to fight through the no-calls because you ain’t getting any in this series.
The role players have now had two games to get over their jitters. It’s time they realize they’ve been the #1 team in the league all season long and they are now playing against the third string. Get gritty. Get tough. Stick to the fundamentals. Then they’ll be all right.
If James is going to win this series, make it hard on him. Make him earn it. Don’t bail him out, which is exactly what happened in Game 2.
I have yet to see James demonstrate the clutch last second heroics of a star during his Playoffs run. Has he ever hit a buzzer beater with the series on the line, the way we’ve seen Jordan or Bryant do it?
Somehow, in spite of two Championships, James has been able to dodge the big shot. With significant role players on his teams, he was much more justified in passing the ball to, say, Dwayne Wade, than stepping up with the big shot to win games. But here, for Cleveland to win, it’s literally in the fingertips of James, and I’ve seen him miss two game-winners in this series.
Point being, the Warriors have a more than excellent chance at winning this series so long as they don’t beat themselves.
The League wants James to continue to reign supreme. But if Game of Thrones shows us anything, it’s that a leader’s rule can be overthrown in the blink of an eye.
Time for the Warriors to give a history lesson of their own.