LeBron James put together his most impressive performance of the season on Monday evening and the Cleveland Cavaliers needed every bit of it. The reigning NBA Finals MVP exploded for 32 points, 17 assists (a season high), and seven rebounds in a 140-135 overtime victory over the red-hot Washington Wizards.
However, he saved his most impressive moment for the biggest spot of the game, executing a mesmerizing game-tying three-pointer with 0.3 seconds remaining in regulation.
The play has been dissected from nearly every angle but slow-motion replay provides perhaps the best view of just how ridiculous the execution was in order to make it happen. First, Kevin Love’s outlet pass was utterly flawless, as the All-Star forward (who happens to be embroiled in trade speculation) lived up to his reputation as the best in the world at the play with a perfect toss.
From there, it was all LeBron being LeBron.
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Washington’s Bradley Beal did his best to thwart James’ progress but his lack of size really showed up on the play. James was able to simply rise up, spin into an on-balance attempt and loft the ball effortlessly at the rim. It is certainly up for debate as to just how “lucky” the attempt was, simply because it glanced off the backboard before falling through.
In the same breath, nothing about how the ball got into the air was based on luck, especially with regard to the footwork that LeBron executed before ever elevating.
It isn’t every day that we can witness a step-by-step breakdown of the biggest play that took place in the sports world, but this video provides us with that window and it was mind-blowing.
