His dream, his mission really, was to bring a championship to Cleveland, and when James crossed the finish line late Sunday, the best player on the planet was overcome with emotion. So after learning the secret to championship basketball in South Beach, he headed back home to share it with his city.
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On the incident in Game 4 and subsequent Finals loss, Green said, “I learned from it, and I’ll be better”. “It doesn’t feel real”. But this one was different. “Happy to see KingJames bring it home for Cleveland!”.
LEBRON JAMES CAME home to Cleveland in 2014 with one objective: deliver a championship to a city long devoid of such an accomplishment.
In the seven games against the Warriors, he averaged 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds and 8.9 assists. That’s what great players do. He didn’t come close. Curry went 1-for-5 with a careless behind-the-back turnover in the last quarter of the season.
Thompson shot 6-of-17 for 14 points, and his backcourt mate Curry went 6-of-19 for 17 points. It gave Cavaliers the lead of 93-89 point Irving finished with 26 points.
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Aussie guard Matthew Dellavedova did not get any game time for the Cavs but was delighted to receive his first championship ring. It was the typical Game 7 of the NBA Finals, hard-fought yet imperfect, a competition and not a beauty pageant.
And as soon as the game ended it was party time in Cleveland. “I don’t know why the man above gives me the hardest road, but… the man above don’t put you in situations you can’t handle”‘.
In his previous three games in this NBA Finals – which excludes Game 5 at Oracle Arena – Green scored a total of 23 points and was criticized for being largely ineffective.
The talk James’ legacy was silly to begin with.
Draymond Green, who scored 32 points for the Warriors, added: “I’ll probably never be over that”. “And I’ve been victorious twice”. It’s the city’s first major sports championship since the Browns won the National Football League championship in 1964.
“I thought, defensively, those last five games of the series was unbelievable”, Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue said.
Only two other clubs down 3-1 in the finals had ever forced a seventh game, none in 50 years until now.
When the Warriors raced out to a 3-1 series lead the Cavs were left for dead by many impartial observers who expected the Golden State to run away with the series.
With the Warriors one stop and perhaps one Curry three from possibly breaking it open, James seized control of the series. They got it, but there were no free-throws. That and the poor shooting of Klay Thompson-coupled with the brilliance of James-proved to be the Warriors downfall.
Just before that James made a huge block of a shot attempt by Andre Iguodala, who was soaring to the basket after taking a pass from Curry on a fast break.
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“Our fans, they ride or die, no matter what’s been going on, no matter the Browns, the Indians, the Cavs, and all other sports teams”, James said.
