Maybe LeBron James is just stubborn. Maybe he’s perfectly capable of delivering game-winning hero moments whenever he wants, but since it seems the whole world is dogging him, he doesn’t want to give anyone the satisfaction of feeling like they’re telling him what to do. And maybe we’re really reaching there, but how else do you explain why LeBron does the things he does? … Last night’s Heat/Jazz game was almost a shot-for-shot replay of last week’s All-Star Game, with Al Jefferson and the Jazz wearing the Western Conference costumes. Utah dominated the first half, leading by as much as 18. But then, just like he did in Orlando, LeBron dominated the second half and brought his team all the way back before one questionable decision marred an otherwise brilliant performance. And just like in the All-Star Game, Dwyane Wade managed to sneak out of the gym free from blame even though he was the one who arguably cost his team a win … LeBron (35 pts, 10 rebs, 6 asts) was simply unstoppable down the stretch. He was incredible offensively and defensively. With just over one minute to go he drilled a three to put Miami ahead by one, and on the next possession hit a double-clutch, off-balance jumper while going to his left that was one big toe shy of being a three-pointer. One Utah announcer’s reaction to that circus shot: “Oh please! Unbelievable! Not from this world! He is not from this planet!” … But the Jazz hung in there and regained the lead when Devin Harris hit a floater over D-Wade, drawing a foul in the process and converting the free throw. So with 4.5 seconds left, Miami down one, the stage was set: LeBron took the inbound pass on the left wing and ran a pick-and-pop with Udonis Haslem that drew the entire defense his way. And just when you’re thinking LeBron HAS to take the last shot – standing not far from where Michael Jordan hit The Last Shot – he instead passed to a wide-open Haslem. Who bricked. Damn … As is typically the case with LeBron, it was the right basketball play to make. But that wasn’t the time for the right basketball play. Maybe if he’d been struggling offensively it would’ve made more sense, but LeBron was ON FIRE. Everything he threw up in the fourth quarter went in. Nobody would have blamed him had he taken the last shot and missed. OK, he still would’ve gotten a ton of hate for missing the shot, but now he’s gonna get it worse because he didn’t even want to shoot … The unsung goat was Wade (31 pts), who not only fouled Harris on the eventual game-winner, but also hacked Harris in the act of shooting a three earlier in the fourth, and missed a huge crunch-time free throw. How does Wade get away with it? He makes just as many mistakes as LeBron – probably more – but it’s like everybody forgets them as soon as the buzzer sounds … The unsung hero was Al Jefferson (20 pts), who was a monster when it mattered. Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin didn’t even need a playbook. Every key possession was “Give it to Al,” and then Al did things to Joel Anthony that would’ve made Detective Olivia Benson question what it all means … ESPN tried its hardest for a storybook Wilt Chamberlain tribute, but it was like the ghost of the late Big Dipper wouldn’t allow it. On the 50th anniversary of the night Wilt scored 100 points in one game, ESPN aired a doubleheader featuring two of Chamberlain’s former teams (Sixers vs. Warriors) and two teams known for explosive offense (Suns vs. Clippers). But the plan for a night of savage buckets to honor the most savage Bucketeer fell flat. Only one of the four teams (Philly) cracked 100 points, and the Suns/Clips game looked more like a mid-’90s grind between the Knicks and Heat. Was this some kind of curse doled out by Wilt? Maybe his spirit is mad at ESPN for helping perpetuate the idea that Michael Jordan is the G.O.A.T. and Shaq is the M.D.E. … Apparently Lou Williams is one of the Ghostbusters, though, as he dropped 25 points in 27 minutes off the bench as the Sixers owned the fourth quarter and beat Golden State by 22 … Keep reading for a recap of the Lakers’ wild night …
Phoenix versus Lob Angeles was a bigger flop than Nic Cage‘s Ghost Rider sequel. Both teams were stuck in the 30s at halftime, and neither team cracked 80 until the game’s final seconds. It was tied up with two minutes left before Marcin Gortat (18 pts, 14 rebs) scored a tip-in to give the Suns the lead, then Gortat had a huge block on Caron Butler a few possessions later. Grant Hill then blocked Chris Paul‘s trey attempt in the closing seconds to preserve the win … On a night when two of his biggest rivals (CP3 in the battle for L.A., LeBron in the battle for overall NBA supremacy) couldn’t get the job done, Kobe Bryant just collected another opponent’s ear to put on his necklace. The Lakers were cruising to what should’ve been an easy win over the Kings before Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum and three backups almost blew it – allowing Jimmer Fredette and Sacramento’s second unit to draw within single-digits before Mike Brown called Kobe, World Peace and D-Fish back onto the court to close it out … Fredette (12 pts) hit a triple to make it a five-point game with five minutes left, and Francisco Garcia annihilated one of Kobe’s jumpers, but the threat stopped there. Fisher hit a couple shots, Metta hit a couple shots, and the still-masked Kobe provided the daggers – a trey to beat the shot clock while falling out of bounds and another tough fadeaway from the top of the key – to push the lead back out of reach. Kobe finished with 38 points, hitting 13-of-24 from the field and 11-of-14 at the line … Other stat lines from Friday: Rudy Gay had 23 points, 12 rebounds and the game-winning jumper to lift Memphis over Toronto; Derrick Rose had 19 points, 9 assists and 3 steals to lead Chicago past Cleveland; Tony Parker‘s 15 points and 3 steals helped San Antonio eviscerate Charlotte by 30; Paul Pierce went for 27 points and 8 assists as Boston took care of New Jersey; Ty Lawson dropped 22 points and 15 dimes in Denver’s win over Houston; Josh Smith put up 24 points, 19 boards and 3 blocks in Atlanta’s win over Milwaukee; and Chris Kaman posted 20 points and 13 boards as short-handed New Orleans got a rare win, upsetting Dallas … The Mavs sent Lamar Odom to the D-League, basically to get his mind and his body right before returning to the lineup. Granted, solid MLB players get sent to the minors all the time, but this is almost unchartered territory for the NBA – even if he did request it himself. Odom is a two-time champ who just won the NBA’s Sixth Man award last year. He’s not quite a superstar but he’s a very, very good player who could start for a lot of teams … We’re out like Gregg Williams‘ bounty fund.
Follow Dime Magazine on Twitter
Become a fan of Dime Magazine on Facebook
