LeBron, Cavs Dethrone Champs in Decisive Game 7

Cleveland sports fans rejoice! For the first time in 50+ years, it doesn't suck being a sports fan living in Cleveland now that the Cavaliers have pulled off the unthinkable by winning three straight against the vaunted Golden State Warriors to hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy and bring Cleveland its first championship (of any kind) since 1964. With their backs against the wall, LeBron James and company rallied to become the first team in NBA history to overcome a 3-1 deficit in the Finals. Against a Golden State team that compiled the best regular season record of all-time no less. Although they needed a little bit of luck and perseverance to get the job done, it took an all-time great series from LeBron James to complete the comeback as the one they call, "King James" registered only the third triple-double ever in an NBA Finals game 7 and became the first player to ever lead a series in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks. While many including myself thought LeBron James was on the decline, he proved otherwise with what just might go down as the greatest series performance in an NBA Finals. Though he only had 27-points in the decisive game 7, he logged 41-points in games 5 & 6, including a 41-point outburst by both James and teammate Kyrie Irving as the two became the first duo in Finals history to each score 40-points or more in a single game.

LeBron did it all as evident of his statistical dominance. His most remarkable feat of the night, however, just might be the chase down block he had on Andre Iguodala. With the game tied at 89-89, Golden State appeared to be on their way to a 2-point lead with just under two minutes remaining when Steph Curry and Iguodala had J.R. Smith all alone on a two on one fast-break. And then out of the shadows soaring from behind, racing in full speed was James who swatted both the ball and any hopes the Warriors had left, like he's done so often throughout his career. But this time was different. It was almost as if Golden State had the air knocked out of them following what I'll always refer to as, "the block heard round the world." The play that will go down as one of the greatest defensive plays in NBA Finals history rattled the Warriors who were unable to score a another basket. Lock down defense by the Cavs coupled with poor shot selection from the Warriors doomed the defending champs who suddenly went dry from the floor and failed to score a single basket in the final 4 minutes and 39 seconds. The shots that Steph Curry and Klay Thompson couldn't seem to miss during the regular season, suddenly stopped falling when it mattered most on the biggest of stages and under the brightest of lights as the two combined to shoot a woeful 12-for-36 from the field.

Following their inability to closeout the series at home in Game 5, the pressure on Golden State only mounted more and more after each failure, meanwhile the confidence inside the Cavs locker room only grew. But with a Game 7 to be played on their home court, even the Warriors never worried too much and they didn't have much reason to, seeing as no home team had failed to reign victorious in a game 7 since 1978 and the Warriors hadn't lost three straight games all year. But with a chance to deliver the state of Ohio its first ever NBA Championship, something he's dreamed of doing since entering the league in 2003, LeBron made it his sole mission to deliver on that promise, playing like a man possessed as Golden State's first 3-game losing-streak of the season came at the worst time possible. His teammates also came through in the most trying of times, whether it was Kevin Love's lock down defense on Steph Curry in crunch time with just seconds remaining or Kyrie Irving's clutch three-pointer in the final minute that broke a tie and gave Cleveland the lead for good. It all amounted to a 93-89 victory that resulted in the Cavs becoming only the fourth team to ever win it all in the same year in which they replaced their head coach mid-season when assistant coach Tyronn Lue took over for the departed David Blatt who was fired in late January.

Had it been the Warriors who won in the franchise's first ever Finals game 7, it might have been Draymond Green who we're talking about and praising here. While I could spend plenty of time criticizing the league's questionable decision to suspend Green for his tussle with James and use that as the turning point as to why Golden State collapsed or Cleveland came alive, I'm not going to discredit the Cavs for pulling off their remarkable comeback. After missing Game 5 due to a suspension for having committed four flagrant fouls during the playoffs, Green came out firing on all cylinders in game 7, lighting up the first half and knocking down 11 of 15 shots, including 6 of 8 from behind the arch and finishing an assist shy of a triple-double with a game-high 32-points. However, it wasn't enough as his blazing start fizzled out down the stretch. The loss now begs the question, where do the Warriors go from here? With Harrison Barnes expected to test the free-agent market and likely out the door with a huge payday coming his way, could fellow free-agent Kevin Durant be the answer? Would he even be a good fit in Golden State where there's already two prolific scorers in place? Sure he's shared the same court as Russell Westbrook and James Harden who have evolved into some of the best scorers in the league, but those were both two players he developed alongside since debuting in the league. While those questions are yet to be answered and remain as possibilities at this point, what we do know is that coach Kerr's team can't be any better during the regular season than they were in 2016, nor do they need to be since they won't be chasing a meaningless record this time around and can actually rest down the stretch if need be. They've also proven that they are in fact beatable as evident by what happened in the Finals.

Now that the Warriors have failed to highlight their record-setting regular season with a championship, will their historic run now be remembered in the same light as the New England Patriots' 18-1 run in 2007 when they failed to finish the season perfect and were upset in the Super Bowl by the New York Giants? Yes or no, one thing is certain -- that they'll no longer be considered the greatest team of all-time, simply because they couldn't capitalize on their home court in a deciding game 7. As for the champs and their leader who continues to cement his legacy among the game's all-time greats, the adage of Cleveland being a bunch of losers can now be lifted as their championship drought has finally ended some 56 years later. Also worth noting is that LeBron is officially a free man now that he's delivered on his promise. If he decides he wants to leave the Cavs to pursue other endeavors like playing for the Lakers or Knicks, the city of Cleveland could never hate him or burn his jerseys like they did the first time he left them for the sunny beaches of Miami, simply because he brought the starving city of Cleveland a title. Not that I think it'll happen, but if it did, he's earned the right to do whatever he pleases without the state-wide witch hunt and death threats. Personally, I think he's there to stay and isn't quite finished with how he plans to leave Cleveland's trophy case looking when his career is all said and done.


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