There are numbers that LeBron James cares about now, and they have nothing to do with on-court statistics.
They are 82, 365, 2.
If the Cleveland Cavaliers lose Sunday night, in Game 7 of an entertaining, if not entirely riveting, NBA Finals, James will have 82 more games, 365 days and two more months of playoffs to try to give his city its first NBA championship.
Thatap not going to cut it.
This number, then, is the only one that matters: 48. As in, there are 48 minutes that separate James from fulfilling the act he was supposed to do all those years ago — win a title for his home state of Ohio.
Believeland? Sure.
All the Cavs have to do Sunday night is win.
There has been analysis. Big lineups vs. small lineups. Switching vs. getting through screens. There will be more, and all will be valid talking points.
But this ultimately comes down to one thing, and it has nothing to do with X’s and O’s: Who wants to win more?
No one wants to win this game more than James. No one.
Thatap a scary fact for the Golden State Warriors to face.
James has been stellar in leading Cleveland back from a 3-1 series deficit to the brink of an NBA title. This is what stellar looks like statistically per game in back-to-back wins: 41 points, 12 rebounds, nine assists, 3.5 steals, three blocks and 56.1 percent shooting from the field, including 50 percent shooting from the 3-point line.
Stellar.
Itap been asked if James can continue this level of play. Of course he can. And he will. Motivation is a funny thing. It leads Willis Reed to overcome a severe injury and limp to the court, giving the New York Knicks a boost to a title. It leads Kobe Bryant to score 60 points in a career-ending game after the Los Angeles Lakers star struggled all season. It pushes when the body says slow down.
It’s been asked if James can duplicate his performances of the last two games. Of course he can. And he will. Itap go time Sunday, with no tomorrow. These 48 minutes are all he could ask for to deliver the title he promised when he returned to Cleveland. No other player in the NBA can control the outcome like James can. Give this level of star a chance to make good on a promise? Watch him work as he’s never worked before. Another 40-point game from James may be the low-water mark in Game 7 with the history of a city at stake.
James has played the last three games with a straight face or a scowl; there has been no in between. He complained to the media about trash talk hurled at him in Game 4, then dished out a dose of his own after a ferocious blocked shot against two-time MVP Stephen Curry in Game 6.
James has flipped a switch.
It was an emotional switch.
James professed to block out the noise. He instructed his teammates to do the same. But the chorus was loud, and it was right. He had to do more. The last three games, James has done it all.
He has teammates but this always was his journey, his road to walk alone, his task to complete. No other Cavaliers player loves Cleveland more than James does.
Itap debatable whether Golden State loves finishing a record 73-win season with a title more than James wants to collect Cleveland’s first. That matters. The Warriors have shown cracks in their armor, shown indifference in giving max effort every night, and have done little to show they have the killer instinct multiple-time champions display.
That can change in one night, but Golden State has painted itself into the worst corner possible.
The one with a hungry LeBron James eyeing the prize.
