He is the first player with consecutive 40-point performances in the NBA Finals since Shaquille O’Neal did it in 2000.
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LeBron returned to Cleveland before the 2014-2015 season, and the expectation from everyone was clear: only a title would satisfy his fans and critics. He’s a giver. He’s always looking to take care of people. They didn’t roll through the playoffs, and they shouldn’t have.
The winningest season in National Basketball Association history ended without a championship Sunday, June 19 (Monday, June 20 in Manila) and try as they did, the Golden State Warriors could not set aside their sorrow, frustration and shock. He also had three blocked shots, including a key one of Andre Iguodala on a fast break in the final minutes.
Must-see moments from this week in sports include several reactions to the Cleveland Cavaliers winning the city’s first pro sports title since 1964.
Golden State hopes to avoid the biggest collapse in NBA Finals history Sunday night. Not once did they lose two games in the row. Shaun Livingston and Leandro Barbosa came off the bench and scored crucial points to ensure victory for the warriors. The Splash Brothers again stuttered, but the Warriors found points from elsewhere to win the game.
The Cavaliers then delivered a beat-down of their own by defeating the Warriors 120-90. Game 5 was really the key.
The line is co-inspired by a line from the movie “Friday” starring Ice Cube and the fact that Ayesha Curry had used it with a hashtag in a Twitter post during a series of tweets regarding the Warriors in the NBA Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers. With their backs on the wall, they leaned in to each other and followed Lebron James’ leadership to bring them to the promised land. After the Cavaliers lost the first two games by a combined 48 points, another article in the New York Times asked whether James would “accept the blame” if the Cavs lost the series “or put the cool sunglasses back on and turn an executive thumb down?” Curry on the other hand was ejected from the game after he threw his mouthguard at a fan.
This was the closest game of the series as the difference in scores never went to double digits. Draymond Green scored off his first five three-point attempts and the Warriors kept a lid on James and Irving, much to the delight of their fans. But the Warriors aren’t going to be forgotten anytime soon.
“Absolutely. Just knowing what our city has been through, northeast OH has been through, as far as our sports and everything for the last 50-plus years”, James said.
James made the second of two free throws to make it a four-point game with 10.6 seconds remaining.
Point guard Kyrie Irving and shooting center Kevin Love were among key contributors to the Cavs’ charge alongside James.
Curry missed another 3-pointer, his fourth of the game-ending drought, starting a wild Cavaliers celebration on the Golden State court.
According to the AP, on Wednesday, Cleveland will host a parade to celebrate the big victory. The Cavaliers are the first team to win Game 7 of the NBA Finals on the road since the Baltimore Bullets did so in 1978.
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No team had ever come from a 1-3 deficit to win the finals. Curry, the regular season Most Valuable Player, finished Game 7 with 17 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists.
