Before the start of the 2015-2016 NBA regular season, there were murmurings among the basketball world that LeBron James had lost a step. At 31, some believed that the King's game had already started declining, and that Steph Curry, one of the best shooters to ever step foot on the hardwood, was hot on his tail for the title of best player in the league and maybe even best player on the planet.
Now, after witnessing the 2016 NBA Finals in which the King, after being down 3-1 to Curry's Warriors in the best-of-seven championship series, led his hometown Cavaliers to a truly historic yet dominating comeback, all of those whispers about James' perceived decline have since become silenced.
That narrative has now been replaced with a much more appropriate one that claims James, due to his play in that series, has cemented his legacy as a top 3-5 player of all time. We already knew he was one of the all-time greats when he left Miami to return to Cleveland two years ago, but his relationship with Northeast Ohio was, and still is, "bigger than basketball." He brought an NBA title to a city that hadn't experienced a sports championship since 1964, and that may not even end up being the icing on the cake when it's all said and done for the King.
In NBA Playoff history, only 11 teams have ever overcome a 3-1 deficit to win the series, and this year's Cavaliers are the 11th. Considering the fact that the NBA's first season was in 1949-1950, those are not very good odds. But, it isn't just that Cleveland defeated those odds, it's the way in which James led them to do so which was so remarkable. And against a team who set the NBA regular season win record, nonetheless.
I should point out that this is not to take any credit away from Kyrie Irving, who was also phenomenal in Cleveland's comeback. In fact, Uncle Drew hit maybe the most crucial shot of the entire series when he made a clutch three over Curry's outstretched arm with less than a minute remaining in Game 7 and the shot clock winding down to give Cleveland the lead. Irving was outstanding, and I was glad to see him have such a great series because I feel he is typically very underrated. I think he's the best point guard in basketball, but that comeback just doesn't happen without James.
He flat out turned up the volume when his back was against the wall. Facing his second straight Finals defeat, the King scored 41, grabbed 16 rebounds and dished out seven assists in Game 5. In Game 6, another elimination scenario, he scored 41 again. And though he (only) netted 27 in Game 7, he managed to add 11 rebounds and 11 assists, good for a triple-double on his way to winning Finals MVP. He was masterful, having dominated every aspect of the game when it really mattered. There simply aren't many basketball players in the entire world that can take complete control over a game like James can.
And I'm sorry to say it, Warriors fans, but Curry isn't one of them.
Make no mistake, when Curry is on, he's on. He's one of the best in the league, and if he's hot, it's most definitely going to be a long night for Golden State's opposition. He's one of the best shooters the game has ever seen, but that's just it - he's a shooter. Now don't get me wrong, shooting is certainly an integral skill in basketball, and it's very much possible to take over a game if you've got the hot hand much like Curry has done on many occasions in his career thus far.
But it's much harder to do so with one skill. The knock on Curry is that he's a bit of a one-dimensional player, and I would tend to agree with that assessment at least to some degree. His defensive ability has been a recent topic of debate, but one thing for certain is that he isn't the defender that James is. This is where I believe the difference is most noticeable. Curry, right now, simply isn't the all-around player that James is. Curry is great, but the King is royalty.
In making this argument I can't help but to revisit James' block from the end of Game 7. This play will probably go down as one of the greatest moments in all of Cleveland sports history, and rightfully so. With less than two minutes left in a tie game, Cleveland misses an opportunity at the rim which leads to a potential fastbreak for Golden State. It looks like a routine two-on-one chance for the Warriors until James runs down the action and pins Andre Iguodala's layup against the backboard, preventing the Warriors from taking the lead and creating a crucial possession for his team. It was one of the most godlike things I've ever seen happen on a basketball court. People aren't supposed to be able to jump that high and hang in the air for that long.
Now tell me something, and be honest with yourself. Let's envision a scenario where the team roles are switched, and Cleveland is about to take the lead on a similar-developing fastbreak. Is Curry making that block that James made?
