The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
LEBRON’S CHASE RESUMES
James in eighth straight NBA Finals, with Jordan’s legacy always in his sight
LeBron James might be a figure from Greek mythology if television cameras weren’t there to document everything he does on a basketball court.
James is a four-time NBA MVP, a three-time Finals MVP, a 14-time All-Star and holds so many records it would take most of this page to list them.
James is appearing in the NBA Finals for the eighth straight time — the fourth straight with the Cavaliers — beginning May 31 in Oakland against the defending champion Golden State Warriors.
If he somehow pulls this off, throws the Cavaliers on his back and leads one of the biggest upsets in NBA history, James will become more even mythological, even as the cameras chronicle every moment of every game so future generations can know all 6-foot-8, 250 chiseled pounds of the myth is real.
One of those records now belonging to James was set on May 21 in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals with Boston at Quicken Loans Arena. James passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (2,356) to set the new benchmark for career playoff field goals. James has made 2,408 buckets over 13 playoff seasons. The number will continue to climb as long as James continues to play.
Breaking Jabbar’s record is important to James. What really makes him special to those that know him is he is so much more than a superb basketball player. He has donated $41 million to send 1,100 students from Akron to college. He speaks his mind on political issues and, even those that don’t agree with his view have to grudgingly admit he thinks before he speaks.
“Listen, any time I’m mentioned in the same breath with the greats, it’s just humbling,” James said in a post-game press conference at the Q after breaking Jabbar’s record. “To know where I come from — you guys know a little bit of the story. But you guys don’t know the full story about where I come from and the struggle that I had. You guys know about the single-parent struggle, and y’all heard that story. But there’s a lot more to it, which I’ll talk about when I’m done playing ball.
“But to know where I come from, small city 35 miles south of here, and to hear I’m in the same category or talked about and jumping these greats in the playoffs — it’s like I was a kid and I watched the playoffs so much and I was like, I would love to be a part of that, that moment, that atmosphere. I think it’s pretty cool. You hear the scoring, the field goals made, and for a kid that really doesn’t care much about scoring.”
One achievement James, 33, hasn’t reached is the one he wants most. Michael Jordan won six championships playing for the Chicago Bulls over 13 seasons. Jordan played two more seasons with Washington before retiring for good. James, in his 15th season, has three championship rings — two with the Miami Heat and one with the Cavaliers.
Former NBA star Charles Barkley bragged about not being a role model. James is a role model as a husband, father and citizen. He carries that trust with the same responsibility he feels as a leader of his basketball team — even more so, because someday, though there is no indication when, his basketball career will end.
“I’ve embraced a lot of situations growing up,” James said. “I think that’s just all part of experience and things of that nature. I mean, I love being a husband now. Did I embrace that at 18, 19? I don’t think so. I mean, I’d never been around married couples. As you get older, you just grow into more things.
“You learn and you grow and you know what’s best for you as you get older. That’s just all of us. I think that’s what being a human being is. You find ways that you feel like you can grow and what you like and what you dislike. At 18, I don’t think I’m the same player that I am today at 33, and I shouldn’t be. I don’t think me personally I should be the same person that I was at 18. I’m just much more seasoned.”
James is more mature as a person off the court and on it he is putting up numbers that defy his age.
The Cavaliers had to play 18 games to get through the Eastern Conference this year.
That equals the number of playoff games they were in 2017 when they lost the Finals to the Warriors in five games.
If the 2018 Finals go six or seven games and James stays healthy, he will play in more playoff games this year than in any other season of his glorious career. Including 82 regular-season games, he has played in 100 games in 2017-18. By the end of the 2018 Finals, even if one team sweeps, he will have played in more games than in any other season in his career.
Not surprisingly, James is the 2018 playoffs leader in minutes played (743), field goals (226) and fieldgoal attempts (417), free throws made (127) and attempted (175), assists (158) and points (612).
He also has made more turnovers (74) than anyone else.
The Cavaliers faced elimination in Game 7 against the Pacers, Game 6 against the Celtics and Game 7 against the Celtics. James played 43 minutes, 25 seconds and scored 45 points in Game 7 against the Pacers. In the last two games against the Celtics, he played 46:06 while scoring 46 points and played 48 minutes and while scoring 35 points.
“The bigger the stage, the bigger the player, and he’s been doing it for us since we’ve been here,” Coach Tyronn Lue told reporters after Game 7.
“The great quote from the great (Los Angeles Clippers coach) Doc Rivers is you always want to go into the Game 7 with the best player, and we have the best player on our team. I liked our chances. And he delivered again.”
Each step taken in the playoffs puts off talk about what James will do next. He can become a free agent on July 1.
The Philadelphia 76ers, Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Lakers have been rumored to be the most likely landing places if James does decide to leave the Cavaliers, though James says not to believe anything unless it comes from him.
Cavs owner Dan Gilbert talked with reporters after Game 7 in Boston and said James’ free agency will be dealt with when the Finals end. Now is not the time to open contract negotiations.
“Like him, I think he’s said this, we’re just focused — and it’s the truth, it’s not avoiding the question — we’re literally focused on (the now),” Gilbert told ESPN.
“It’s just so intense in the playoffs and getting to the Finals and now the Finals, I don’t think — and I know he doesn’t — I don’t think even our guys are talking (about anything other than) what’s in front of them.”
Philadelphia, New York, Los Angeles and other cities across the country have erected billboards to persuade James to play with their respective cities.
Akron has them all beat. A GoFundMe page has been established to raise $1 million to erect a LeBron James statue in Akron.
Like the mark James has left on countless fans and youths in northeast Ohio and the world, a statue will last long, long after James is finished with basketball.