The Game: 2014 Finals, Game 1
The Series Situation: San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat tied, 0-0
The Play: In the middle of Game 1 of The Finals, the air conditioning at the
AT&T Center gave out. The temperature rose and LeBron James was the player most
affected. Suffering from cramps, James was subbed out multiple times in the
second half, leaving the game for good with 3:59 left in the fourth quarter and
the Heat within two. The Spurs finished the game on a 31-9 run, including a 16-3
stretch after James sat down.
The Significance: Historically, James’ cramps meant absolutely nothing. The
Spurs were going to win this series no matter how he felt at the end of Game 1.
They lost Game 2, but destroyed the Heat in Games 3, 4 and 5, finishing with the
best point differential (plus-70) in Finals history and putting on the most
beautiful display of team basketball that we’ve ever seen. If there was some
significance to the last nine minutes of Game 1, it was about how potent an
unselfish offense could be. San Antonio scored 30 points on their final 14
possessions of the game, shooting 12-for-14 and assist on 10 of the 12 buckets.
James’ cramping had little to do with that and was a distracting narrative for
some to talk about for the next couple of days. Maybe they’ll bring it up again
when it’s time to discuss his “legacy” and how many Finals he lost.
— John Schuhmann
John Schuhmann is a staff writer for NBA.com. You can e-mail him here, find his
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