Fifty-four years of sports heartache and heartbreak gone.
The city of Cleveland is on the happy end of one the best sports moments in history thanks to LeBron James and the Cavaliers.
The Cavs became the first team in NBA history to overcome a 3-1 deficit in the Finals as they topped the Golden State Warriors 93-89 in game 7 to win the NBA championship Sunday in Oakland.
A week ago, the Warriors were set to win back-to-back titles and cement their place as the best team in NBA history after going 73-9 in the regular season.
Yet Sunday, it was the Cavs celebrating on the court inside Oracle Arena.
It was a moment so significant several of the Cavs players broke down in tears after the final buzzer sounded.
Over the course of his career, critics have fired plenty of shots at the Cavs star.
"He's not clutch."
"He doesn't have a killer instinct."
"He'll never win a ring."
"He'll never do it in Cleveland."
Yet, less than 24 hours delivering on his promise to Cleveland, at what point should critics acknowledge what a great player he is?
That point should be now.
In game 7, James finished with 27 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. That's a triple-double for those of you keeping score. For the series he averaged 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, nine assists, 2.3 blocks and 2.6 steals.
No, James is not Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, or even Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, but he did become the first player to do this:
Was it good coaching that helped the Cavs win? Not necessarily. You won't find an NBA championship team that fired its head coach mid-season and replaced him with a 39-year-old with no head coaching experience.
James made Stephen Curry and the Warriors look like amateurs and he did it with guys with little or no playoff experience. Kyrie Irving played phenomenal basketball averaging 27 points a game during the Finals after missing last year's series with an injury. Role players like Kevin Love, J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert, Richard Jefferson and Mo Williams are NBA champions because of James.
It's time to give credit where credit is due: LeBron James will go down as an all-time great player.
The city of Cleveland is on the happy end of one the best sports moments in history thanks to LeBron James and the Cavaliers.
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| LeBron James hoists the Finals MVP trophy Sunday in Oakland. |
The Cavs became the first team in NBA history to overcome a 3-1 deficit in the Finals as they topped the Golden State Warriors 93-89 in game 7 to win the NBA championship Sunday in Oakland.
A week ago, the Warriors were set to win back-to-back titles and cement their place as the best team in NBA history after going 73-9 in the regular season.
Yet Sunday, it was the Cavs celebrating on the court inside Oracle Arena.
It was a moment so significant several of the Cavs players broke down in tears after the final buzzer sounded.
Here's JR Smith during his post game interview:Like him or hate him, Lebron James crying here is raw emotion. He brought a championship to Cleveland. Props https://t.co/f0wL27Cyv2— Dylan (@DylanTheMan37) June 20, 2016
As usual the spotlight will be on James, who promised to bring a championship to Cleveland two years ago.Damn RT @TheDoctorCarson: I'm literally crying pic.twitter.com/9zd997U7UY— Elliott James (@Mr1738) June 20, 2016
Over the course of his career, critics have fired plenty of shots at the Cavs star.
"He's not clutch."
"He doesn't have a killer instinct."
"He'll never win a ring."
"He'll never do it in Cleveland."
Yet, less than 24 hours delivering on his promise to Cleveland, at what point should critics acknowledge what a great player he is?
That point should be now.
In game 7, James finished with 27 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. That's a triple-double for those of you keeping score. For the series he averaged 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, nine assists, 2.3 blocks and 2.6 steals.
No, James is not Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, or even Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, but he did become the first player to do this:
He is the first player in NBA history to lead all players in all five categories for an entire playoff series https://t.co/5tCfyA606A— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 20, 2016
Was it good coaching that helped the Cavs win? Not necessarily. You won't find an NBA championship team that fired its head coach mid-season and replaced him with a 39-year-old with no head coaching experience.
James made Stephen Curry and the Warriors look like amateurs and he did it with guys with little or no playoff experience. Kyrie Irving played phenomenal basketball averaging 27 points a game during the Finals after missing last year's series with an injury. Role players like Kevin Love, J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert, Richard Jefferson and Mo Williams are NBA champions because of James.
It's time to give credit where credit is due: LeBron James will go down as an all-time great player.
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