Corn on the Colb
06-08-2007, 12:04 AM
Prince James
San Antonio welcomes LeBron to the finals, Spurs' style
By Colby Satterthwaite
Frozen.
Hesitant.
Flustered.
These are all words that describe the fashion in which LeBron James played his first NBA Finals game.
In the week leading up to Thursday night's series opener, it was hard not to think, "Is LeBron REALLY the next Jordan?" I was one who contemplated it as well, it's impossible not to. Could he really take over the NBA, and win the first Finals he appeared in, as MJ did? Well, it may have just been one game, but if the Spurs' 85-76 victory was any indication of how the series may go, the answer is no.
At least I didn't see a second coming in Game 1. I saw a young superstar who was frozen. Hesitant. Flustered. I saw the young kid in him come roaring out as fast as they let Paris Hilton out of jail.
But somehow, I feel a little bad for the kid. Somehow everyone seems to forget this kid is 22 years old. In his short NBA career, he's been asked to resurrect an NBA franchise from the lottery, to be the new face of the NBA, to be a savior to not only Cleveland, but perhaps basketball in general, and he's responded to every call. I really do recognize the pressure he's facing, and how tough it probably is to live up to that pressure.
Still, there's a reason we ask him to do these things.
Now LeBron has set himself up to be asked to become the next great player of all-time, starting with these NBA Finals. But Thursday, I saw a kid who was absolutely frozen, hesitant, flustered, just flat out bothered. There's no other way to describe it. He was visibly bothered by Bruce Bowen's mere presence in his general area, not to mention the wall that was Tim Duncan he saw over Bowen's lowered shoulders.
Tim Duncan? Oh yeah, he IS still playing, isn't he?
The Big Fundamental was no less than a wall on Thursday night, to put it lightly. He stormed out of the gate, swatting away three shots in the 1st quarter alone, to go with his eight points and four boards, including one that contributed to LeBron James' 0-8 start. Duncan would finish with 24 points, 13 rebounds, and five rejections in all, making him the early frontrunner to snag his 4th Finals' MVP award in 4 tries.
However, some could very well argue that it was another part of San Antonio's 'Big 3' that was the focal point of the Spurs' success tonight. That part is Tony Parker. Parker shot just over 50% from the field and ended up with a game-high 27 points, most of it from acrobatic drives and finishes among Cleveland's trees in the paint. Cavaliers' Coach Mike Brown threw multiple defenders at Parker, as every team San Antonio has faced thus far has, and each of them failed miserably. Larry Hughes couldn't stop Parker on the very first drive the Frenchman attempted. Sasha Pavlovic looked just overwhelmed by his speed. LeBron, while long enough to help contain him, couldn't keep up with Parker, and nobody who had to help these guys out when they got picked by Duncan could stop him either, as Parker effortlessly pitched perfect passes to his big man, many of which Timmy finished with a dunk.
Regardless of who was the best player on the court was, we all know who the country - and the NBA - wanted it to be. Maybe even needed it to be -- 'King' James.
He hardly played like royalty, finishing with a disastruous 4-16 shooting night. He didn't convert on a field goal attempt until the 7:13 mark in the 3rd quarter. Contrary to the layout of James' first half gameplan, it was on a lay-up. He would finish another acrobatic drive in the 3rd, and hit consecutive 3's in the middle of the 4th quarter to round out his scoring from the field, but he, Drew Gooden (14 pts), nor rookie Daniel Gibson (team-high 16 points) could cut the Spurs' lead to any less than 8 down the stretch.
Even after all of this, the basketball Gods handed LeBron one last chance to perhaps turn the game around and steal one in the AT&T Center in the final minutes. A chance to begin his legacy with a stunning comeback in the waning moments of Game 1:
With the Cavs down 8, LeBron put up a 3 from the top of the arc early in the shot clock, just where he'd hit two a few minutes before, and missed. San Antonio got one of its 42 rebounds on the night (to Cleveland's 33), ran down the shot clock, and fittingly pushed the lead to 82-72 with a Tim Duncan dunk. Game over.
Maybe these basketball Gods have a plan. Perhaps LeBron himself does. But if that plan was to send a message in San Antonio Thursday night, send a message to the Spurs, the Western Conference, and to the rest of the world, then something went terribly wrong, something got lost in the shuffle.
So let's just wait and watch before we crown James as King.
San Antonio welcomes LeBron to the finals, Spurs' style
By Colby Satterthwaite
Frozen.
Hesitant.
Flustered.
These are all words that describe the fashion in which LeBron James played his first NBA Finals game.
In the week leading up to Thursday night's series opener, it was hard not to think, "Is LeBron REALLY the next Jordan?" I was one who contemplated it as well, it's impossible not to. Could he really take over the NBA, and win the first Finals he appeared in, as MJ did? Well, it may have just been one game, but if the Spurs' 85-76 victory was any indication of how the series may go, the answer is no.
At least I didn't see a second coming in Game 1. I saw a young superstar who was frozen. Hesitant. Flustered. I saw the young kid in him come roaring out as fast as they let Paris Hilton out of jail.
But somehow, I feel a little bad for the kid. Somehow everyone seems to forget this kid is 22 years old. In his short NBA career, he's been asked to resurrect an NBA franchise from the lottery, to be the new face of the NBA, to be a savior to not only Cleveland, but perhaps basketball in general, and he's responded to every call. I really do recognize the pressure he's facing, and how tough it probably is to live up to that pressure.
Still, there's a reason we ask him to do these things.
Now LeBron has set himself up to be asked to become the next great player of all-time, starting with these NBA Finals. But Thursday, I saw a kid who was absolutely frozen, hesitant, flustered, just flat out bothered. There's no other way to describe it. He was visibly bothered by Bruce Bowen's mere presence in his general area, not to mention the wall that was Tim Duncan he saw over Bowen's lowered shoulders.
Tim Duncan? Oh yeah, he IS still playing, isn't he?
The Big Fundamental was no less than a wall on Thursday night, to put it lightly. He stormed out of the gate, swatting away three shots in the 1st quarter alone, to go with his eight points and four boards, including one that contributed to LeBron James' 0-8 start. Duncan would finish with 24 points, 13 rebounds, and five rejections in all, making him the early frontrunner to snag his 4th Finals' MVP award in 4 tries.
However, some could very well argue that it was another part of San Antonio's 'Big 3' that was the focal point of the Spurs' success tonight. That part is Tony Parker. Parker shot just over 50% from the field and ended up with a game-high 27 points, most of it from acrobatic drives and finishes among Cleveland's trees in the paint. Cavaliers' Coach Mike Brown threw multiple defenders at Parker, as every team San Antonio has faced thus far has, and each of them failed miserably. Larry Hughes couldn't stop Parker on the very first drive the Frenchman attempted. Sasha Pavlovic looked just overwhelmed by his speed. LeBron, while long enough to help contain him, couldn't keep up with Parker, and nobody who had to help these guys out when they got picked by Duncan could stop him either, as Parker effortlessly pitched perfect passes to his big man, many of which Timmy finished with a dunk.
Regardless of who was the best player on the court was, we all know who the country - and the NBA - wanted it to be. Maybe even needed it to be -- 'King' James.
He hardly played like royalty, finishing with a disastruous 4-16 shooting night. He didn't convert on a field goal attempt until the 7:13 mark in the 3rd quarter. Contrary to the layout of James' first half gameplan, it was on a lay-up. He would finish another acrobatic drive in the 3rd, and hit consecutive 3's in the middle of the 4th quarter to round out his scoring from the field, but he, Drew Gooden (14 pts), nor rookie Daniel Gibson (team-high 16 points) could cut the Spurs' lead to any less than 8 down the stretch.
Even after all of this, the basketball Gods handed LeBron one last chance to perhaps turn the game around and steal one in the AT&T Center in the final minutes. A chance to begin his legacy with a stunning comeback in the waning moments of Game 1:
With the Cavs down 8, LeBron put up a 3 from the top of the arc early in the shot clock, just where he'd hit two a few minutes before, and missed. San Antonio got one of its 42 rebounds on the night (to Cleveland's 33), ran down the shot clock, and fittingly pushed the lead to 82-72 with a Tim Duncan dunk. Game over.
Maybe these basketball Gods have a plan. Perhaps LeBron himself does. But if that plan was to send a message in San Antonio Thursday night, send a message to the Spurs, the Western Conference, and to the rest of the world, then something went terribly wrong, something got lost in the shuffle.
So let's just wait and watch before we crown James as King.