This is what happened to J.R. Smith's hand while diving to the floor for a loose ball in Game 1. pic.twitter.com/fQHJsKGhrR
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) June 8, 2016
The NBA Finals have not treated the Cleveland Cavaliers kindly thus far. They have been beaten soundly by the Golden State Warriors in the first two games, and right now it seems like they are only playing for the moral victory of not being swept. It has been rough, and you can find the physical embodiment of how this series has gone for the Cavaliers by looking at J.R. Smith’s hand.
Smith dived for a loose ball in Game 1, desperate to beat Andrew Bogut to grab it. In the process, he suffered a very nasty floor burn on his hand. Calling it a “floor burn” almost feels like an undersell, frankly. He tore through several layers of skin on the palm of his right hand. One can only assume that stung quite a bit, and, of course, in the end, it was all for naught, as the Cavs still lost.
Smith has not been having a particularly good Finals thus far, and has come into criticism for disappearing, as was also the case during last year’s Finals. However, one cannot look at Smith’s hand after he dove for that loose ball and accuse him of not leaving it all on the court. At the very least, he seems to have left some skin layers on the floor.
(Via Twitter)
