After being unfairly criticized by many so called "experts" for passing the ball to Delonte West for the potential game winning shot and not taking it himself in game 1. LeBron James heard everything from, his team sucks and he should've taken the final shot, to LeBron can't handle the pressure of a game winning shot in the final seconds of a game. Friday night, LeBron shut them all up and the doubters were left with their jaws clamped tight and had nothing to say, for once.
LeBron made a fadeaway 3-pointer over Orlando's Hedo Torkoglu as the final buzzer sounded Friday night to give the Cavaliers some life in the postseason, as their playoffs were a heartbeat away from major trouble, a 96-95 victory over the Orlando Magic in game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals to tie up the series at 1 game a piece.
From 23 feet -- matching his jersey number -- LeBron made a shot unlike any before in Cleveland history. Taking the inbounds pass from, Mo Williams, LeBron only had time to turn his shoulders toward the basket and fire. As the shot dropped in, James sprinted into the arms of his teammates as 20,562 stunned fans hugged each other in disbelief. In the past, this was the kind of shot that happened against the Cavs. Remember Michael Jordan's shot over the Cavs' Craig Ehlo? Well now it's time for Cleveland to have those shots go their way and it's all because of the Chosen One, LeBron James.
One second before LeBron's shot, Turkoglu had hit a 12-footer to give the Magic, who overcame a 23-point deficit in the first half, a 95-93 lead. Mike Brown called a timeout for the Cavs and set up a play for LeBron, the league's MVP who finished with 35 points. James darted toward the basket to get some room on Turkoglu and then cut back near the top of the circle before letting go of the shot of his life. After seeing LeBron's only 3-pointer of the game fall, Mo Williams dropped to his knees and pounded the floor with his right hand as The Q shook to its core.
Rashard Lewis scored 23 points and Turkoglu had 21 for the Magic. Dwight Howard only scored 10 points but had 18 rebounds for the Magic. LeBron had 35 points and 5 assists, Mo Williams had 19 points and Zydrunas Ilguakas had 12 points and 15 rebounds for Cleveland.
Like the chalk LeBron famously blows above his head before every game, Cleveland's season was on the verge of disappearing into thin air. Their offense was wack and their defence was not up to its usual intensity as the Cavs let the Magic come back from a 23 point deficit. Until LeBron, the hometown kid from down the Interstate in nearby Akron wearing the same number of his boyhood idol Michael Jordan, who was a Cavs killer, restored their confidence that this might finally be Cleveland's season with a shot that will forever be remembered.
Peace and Much Love To Ya :)
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