MIAMI – The San Antonio Spurs set an NBA Finals record in the first half of Game 3, but there is reason to blame LeBron James for a 111-92 blowout loss at home.
He may be a four-time MVP and the two-time reigning Finals MVP, but the Twitter wars can begin. Outside of a hot start in the first quarter, James was absent.
The Miami Heat star finished with 22 points, seven assists, five rebounds, five steals and seven turnovers. In addition he finished with the worst plus/minus of all active players and picked up five fouls.
Maybe the ESPN coverage since Game 2 was a bit overblown?
The so-called basketball genius seemed to think too much and could not duplicate his performance from the previous contest. Chris Bosh called James “The most unselfish player I have ever played with” something that has its pros and cons. James will never escape the Michael Jordan debates and despite all it he still appears to accept defeat. In the opening period, James’ scoring was the only positive for the Heat.
So why did he play the last three quarters so passively?
It is clear that despite all the growth and maturity James has developed since his first season with the Heat, he still lacks leadership. Ray Allen has openly spoken about James needing to learn to be a leader all the time. This wasn’t the first time a team had a large lead early in a Finals game. Since James took the approach of ball-handler and playmaker why did Norris Cole take nine shots while Chris Bosh took just four?
Bosh didn’t miss a shot and Dwyane Wade did his part adding 22 points.
With the Spurs having such a large lead why is it that the best player on the planet left just a thumb print on a Finals game in his own gym? Maybe he just isn’t good enough. Maybe his leg was still healing from Game 1 in San Antonio.
Maybe his son will be a bit more impressed since he scored 22 instead of just seven. A fourth quarter stat line of four points, three turnovers and three fouls say a lot about this game and James.
In its first loss at home this postseason, the King was simply missing in action.
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