James took Cavs to the promised land

CLEVELAND — LeBron James has taken 59 players to the NBA Finals.

Think about that — 59 teammates from Sasha Pavlovic to Sasha Kaun ... all to the Finals.

And four coaches: Mike Brown, David Blatt, Erik Spoelstra and Tyronn Lue.

It was Commissioner Adam Silver who mentioned the stats of 59 teammates who can thank James for their trip to the NBA Finals.

I thought about that Friday as the Cavaliers lost 108-85 to Golden State as they were swept out of the NBA Finals. his hand in a locker room outburst.

James is 33. He has spent 11 of his 15 seasons in Cleveland. He delivered a championship in 2016.

This season, he played in 104 games. The Cavs played 104 games. It’s the most games of any season in his career. In many ways, this was the best season of his career. Does James stay or go? Whatever he does, he has more than delivered on what he promised the fans when he returned in the summer of 2014.

Meanwhile, fans should appreciate the last four years of NBA playoff basketball.

Only four players remain from the 2016 title team: Tristan Thompson, J.R. Smith, Kevin Love and James.

Love talked about how so many teams are “obsessed with beating the Warriors.” So Love will be the subject of trade rumors.

Houston general manager Daryl Morey called it a “weapons race” when he traded for Chris Paul a year ago, teaming him with James Harden to try and beat Golden State. The Rockets lost to the Warriors in seven games, partly because Paul was injured and missed the last two games.

Or maybe not.

Part of the success of the Warriors is they consistently play well enough to win big games and make big shots.

It’s why they have defeated the Cavs in eight of nine games in the Finals since adding Kevin Durant.

It’s why James and so many others in the NBA are frustrated.

As Love said, “Somebody has to try to dethrone these guys and work their way to that.”

But for now, the talk should be how James has given Cavs fans a sense of pride and a title to cherish. Being swept by the Warriors doesn’t change that.