Cleveland Cavaliers 93-89 Golden State Warriors
There is no doubt that LeBron James is one of the all-time great players in the NBA because of his many accomplishments, but this may be his biggest one.
Down 3-1 against the 73-9 Golden State Warriors in the 2016 Finals, LeBron James led the Cleveland Cavaliers to rally with their backs against the wall.
In last season’s Finals, the Warriors were able to win the title because they were the better and more complete team. It didn’t help when James’ co-stars in Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love were out after suffering season-ending injuries.
But this time around, the two were in the lineup injury-free and they have been big contributors in Cleveland’s comeback trail. And after everything that happened in their series, it all boiled down to that one fateful day in the Oracle Arena.
As we continue to wait for our 2019/20 season to resume, join SBOBET as we relive one of the best NBA Finals that we’ve seen in the modern era.
Highlights of the game
Cleveland were in danger of losing another one against their rivals prior to this match. After going back-and-forth in the first three games of the series, the Warriors turned to their defence and stifled the Cavaliers to take a commanding 3-1 lead in Game 4.
But when Klay Thompson made a snarky remark about LeBron James’ “feelings” after Game 4, that lit a fire for the Cavaliers to try and mount a comeback.
In Games 5 and 6, LeBron James would notch back-to-back 41-point games to dispatch their nemesis while his co-stars in Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love did their part too.
After having all six games decided in blowouts, this winner-take-all Game 7 was the perfect way to cap off this series as both teams went at it from tip-off.
Draymond Green, who was suspended in Game 5 because of his altercation with LeBron James in Game 4, continued his fine performance by inspiring the defending champions to take a seven-point lead after the first half.
With the Cavaliers determined to fight back, they’ve turned to JR Smith and he responded by knocking down two straight threes to pull them within two points midway the third period.
Cleveland would have their turn to regain the lead when their defence forced some turnovers with Kyrie Irving taking care of the scoring on the other end.
In the fourth quarter, basketball fans were treated to a shootout between these two teams.
But fast forward to the last three minutes of the game, neither team can score a basket with the game level at 89 points.
The Cavaliers had a chance to break level when Kyrie Irving attempted a floater, but it missed badly and it triggered a rare fast break for the Warriors.
Racing down the floor in a 2-on-1 situation, JR Smith was alone in an island as Steph Curry delivered a textbook bounce pass to Andre Iguodala who was on his way for a layup.
Then all of a sudden, LeBron James came out of nowhere with his signature chasedown block to stop the Warriors on their tracks.
“Iguodala to Curry, back to Iguodala up for a layup. Oh, blocked by James!” said color commentator Mike Breen.
Kyrie Irving would have his signature moment under a minute left. After forcing a switch to get Steph Curry to guard him, Irving knocked down a crucial stepback three to give Cleveland a three-point lead.
The Warriors weren’t able to respond after a couple of chances on offence. In what was a memorable sequence, Kevin Love played great defence on Steph Curry to force a missed three-pointer.
And after a made free throw by LeBron James and another defencive stop, the Cleveland Cavaliers became the first team in NBA history to rally from a 3-1 series deficit to win the championship.
Key statistics
The kid from Akron was rightfully named as the Finals MVP because of his overall impact. The King led all players throughout the series in terms of points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks.
LeBron James was also the third player ever besides Jerry West and James Worthy to notch a triple-double in a Game 7 of the NBA Finals. He tallied 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists.
Draymond Green almost had a triple-double himself in this game by notching 32 points, 15 rebounds, and nine assists.
The Splash Brothers struggled with their efficiency in this game. Klay Thompson and Steph Curry combined for 31 points but only shot 6-for-24 from three-point range.
What happened next?
Golden State pulled off a coup by signing Kevin Durant that summer and the high scoring forward would lead them to back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018.
They then lost to Toronto in the 2019 NBA Finals And few months later, Kevin Durant went on to join Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn. However, they have yet to produce some NBA 2020 highlights because of their injuries.
LeBron James would go to the Lakers as he tries to lead them to their 17th title. The Lakers currently own one of the highest NBA 2020 odds of winning the chip.
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