Joel Embiid And Other NBA Players Couldn’t Believe J.R. Smith Ran Out The Clock With Game 1 Tied

Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals didn’t appear to be an all-timer on paper, with the Golden State Warriors entering as double-digit favorites over the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, the brilliance of LeBron James kept things (very) interesting and, in the waning seconds of regulation, George Hill had two free throw attempts to potentially put the Cavaliers in the driver’s seat.

Hill made the first but, after missing the second, J.R. Smith gathered the rebound in potential scoring position. Unfortunately for Cleveland, Smith forgot the score and attempted to run the clock out, resulting in overtime.

In case there was any doubt about what transpired in Smith’s brain, he later told James that he did, indeed, misread the scoreboard.

In the aftermath of this potentially brutal blunder, the reactions were swift, including from Smith’s colleagues around the league.

https://twitter.com/BPortistime/status/1002391416461451264

To make things even worse, many alluded to Smith and a potential appearance (alongside JaVale McGee from the third quarter) on an upcoming installment of a popular running segment.

And, for good measure, Smith’s mishap even put the Las Vegas spread into peril.

It, of course, wasn’t guaranteed that Smith would be able to convert the game-winner or that the Warriors would not have had time to answer on the other end. Still, this is a moment that will seemingly follow Smith for a long time and, in short, the Cavaliers look to be in real peril moving forward in the series.