Golden State Warriors: How Their Historic Season Slipped Away

1. King James Is Really F***ing Good

Draymond Green’s suspension robbed the Warriors of a pristine opportunity to close out their opponent at home, but if it weren’t for LeBron James’ all-time performances in Games 5-7, that absence wouldn’t have even mattered.

At the end of the day, you give credit where it’s due: King James just presented the defining moment of his legendary career, almost singlehandedly leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to their first NBA championship over one of the greatest teams of all time.

For the series, LeBron won unanimous Finals MVP honors behind his absurd averages of 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, 8.9 assists, 2.6 steals and 2.3 blocks per game on .494/.371/.721 shooting splits.

Despite averaging 24.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, 8.3 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.8 blocks per game through the first four games, James was hammered for not being assertive enough on offense, for not playing at a Herculean level, for not transcending the sport itself.

In Game 5, with his team facing elimination, LeBron was masterful with a 41-16-7-3-3 stat line on 16-of-30 shooting from the field and 4-for-8 shooting from three-point range. None of it would’ve mattered if he came out complacent in Game 6 and lost his fifth Finals, but he didn’t.

With the Cavs counting on another all-time performance to force a Game 7, LeBron delivered once again in Game 6 and was arguably even better, dropping a 41-11-8-4-3 stat line on 16-of-27 shooting from the floor and 3-of-6 shooting from three-point range.

In Game 7, LeBron poured in a 27-11-11 triple-double (the third ever in a Finals Game 7) with three blocks and two steals. He even made the defensive play of the game, pinning Andre Iguodala‘s layup on the backboard and preserving the 89-89 tie that Irving would break with his dagger three-pointer.

LeBron was the game-changer in every sense of the word in this series. He tea-bagged Draymond Green and somehow got him suspended. He was the best player in a series featuring Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Kyrie Irving.

If not for The Block in Game 7, his block on Curry in Game 6 would’ve been the defining moment of the 2016 NBA Finals.

After Klay Thompson made his comments about it being a “man’s league,” LeBron became more than a man among boys; he was been the proverbial Boogeyman, a terrifying monster lurking in the nightmares of the mere children that represented his competition.

It was almost enough to make you wish he’d pick on someone his own size, until you realized he was doing all this against a 73-win juggernaut.

After leading Cleveland to its first ever NBA championship against arguably the greatest team ever, King James reminded the world that he’s so much more than the modern day Jerry West.

He might have been one of the only players in NBA history singularly talented, focused and well-balanced enough to pull off a feat like this.

More hoops habit: 2016 NBA Finals: Game 7 Recap And Highlights

Curry just had arguably the greatest offensive season in NBA history, and no one can take that away from him. He was the undisputed MVP this season, and no one should think otherwise. But LeBron James did what he had to by turning in one of the greatest Finals performances we’ve ever seen, and it’s the chief reason the Warriors’ historic season ended in defeat.