LeBron James Does It All as Cavaliers Beat Hawks in Overtime; Lead Series 3-0
The Cleveland Cavaliers edged the Atlanta Hawks 114-111 in overtime on May 24th to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the best of seven series. The Cavaliers were led by LeBron James, who did it all, and by that we mean he really did it all. James missed his first 10 shots but still finished with a triple double of jaw-dropping proportions. James scores 37 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and had 13 assists for the winners.
The Hawks played without shooting guard Kyle Korver, who went down with a high ankle sprain in Game 2. Shooting forward DeMarre played through a knee injury and finished with 10 points. Center Al Horford was thrown out of the game in the first half after being assessed a flagrant 2 foul. Despite all that, the Hawks pushed the game into overtime. But the Cavaliers had their own injury issues, with Kevin Love out for the rest of the playoffs and Kyrie Irving out with tendinitis in his left knee.
It was LeBron James who made the difference. He led every player in points, rebounds and assists in getting that triple double, and did it while favoring his right leg later in the game. James came back to Cleveland to win championships, and is playing like he’s on a mission.
The Atlanta Hawks have their backs to the wall now. No NBA team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a series. Game 4 is May 26th in Cleveland.
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I can think of no team sport where one player can make such a sizable differential, at least for one game. This example must clearly be held in evidence. However, since no NBA team has ever come back down 3-0 to win a series, it should be pointed out that LeBron has taken the Cavs this far before and come up short. Many great players have had the same fate: Oscar Robertson, Elgin Baylor,and the GOAT Wilt Chamberlain couldn’t win without a solid supporting team either. Of course, the Warriors are not the Celtics of old.