Champs! James' triple-double lifts Heat to title
Miami Heat small forward LeBron James (6) and shooting guard Dwyane Wade react in the final moments during the second half at Game 5 of the NBA finals basketball series, June 21, 2012, in Miami. / AP
(AP) MIAMI - The decision is final: LeBron James made the right call coming to Miami.
Finally an NBA champion, it's all worth it now.
James had 26 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists, and got the kind of help that was worth leaving home for, leading the Heat in a 121-106 rout of the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night to win the NBA Finals in five games.
Best player in the game, best team in the league.
James has found it all since taking his talents to South Beach.
"It means everything," James said moments after the win. "I made a difficult decision to leave Cleveland but I understood what my future was about ... I knew we had a bright future (in Miami). This is a dream come true for me. This is definitely when it pays off."
James added the finals MVP honor to his regular-season award, calling it "the happiest day of my life" during the award ceremony as he stood atop the championship podium with his teammates.
He left the game along with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh for good with 3:01 remaining for a round of hugs and the start for a celebration he's been waiting for since arriving in the NBA out of high school as the No. 1 pick of the 2003 draft. James hopped up and down in the final minutes, shared a long hug with opponent Kevin Durant, and then smiled as he watched the confetti rain down from the rafters.
"It's about damn time. It's about damn time," James said.
The Heat took control in the second quarter, briefly lost it and blew the game open again in the third behind their role players, James content to pass to wide-open 3-point shooters while the Thunder focused all their attention on him.
The disappointment of losing to Dallas in six games a year ago vanished in a blowout of the demoralized Thunder, who got 32 points and 11 rebounds from Durant.
Bosh and Wade, the other members of the Big Three who sat alongside James as he promised titles at his Miami welcoming party two summers ago, both had strong games. Bosh, who broke down in tears as the Heat left their own court after losing Game 6 last year, finished with 24 points and Wade scored 20. The Heat also got a huge boost from Mike Miller, who made seven 3-pointers and scored 23 points.
That all made it easier for James, the most heavily scrutinized player in the league since his departure from Cleveland, when he announced he was "taking his talents to South Beach" on a TV special called "The Decision" that was criticized everywhere from talk shows and water coolers straight to the commissioner's office. James has said he wishes he handled things differently, but few who watched the Cavaliers fail to assemble championship talent around him could have argued with his desire to depart.
He found in Miami a team where he never had to do it alone, though he reminded everyone during this sensational postseason run that he still could when necessary. He got support whenever he needed it in this series, from Shane Battier's 17 points in Game 2 to Mario Chalmers' 25 in Game 4.
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Congratulations Heat! Way to embrace the hate and come out on top!
1. Kobe Bryant LA Lakers
2. Rashard Lewis Washington
3. Tim Duncan San Antonio
4. Kevin Garnett Boston
5. Gilbert Arenas Orlando / Memphis
6. Dirk Nowitzki Dallas
7. Pau Gasol LA Lakers
8. Carmelo Anthony New York
9. Amare Stoudemire New York
10. Joe Johnson Atlanta
11. Dwight Howard Orlando
12. Elton Brand Philadelphia
13. Deron Williams Brooklyn
14. Chris Paul LA Clippers
15. Kevin Durant Oklahoma City
There is a SALARY CAP in the NBA. Everyone plays by the same rules. Pat Riley and the Heat just played the game better than everyone else.
Most writers and television commentators are hard pressed to criticize the NBA or any of its officials. They crave the access that being "good and supportive little boys and girls" provides. I love the game of basketball. I've been playing and following it for over 45 years. What david stern has done to the game of basketball is an abomination.
He certainly knows marketing, and can take credit for the relative financial stability of the league. However, when it comes to the game itself, he is a disgrace. No other major sport has a double standard like the NBA. People like wade and lebron are given carte blanche to travel and foul with impunity. Only these two and kobe, out west, can throw their bodies toward the basket and be assured that , not only will no offensive foul be called, but it will result in an "and one".
The argument that basketball is simply the most difficult sport to ref does not explain the corruption. College refs do a remarkable job. When was the last time you watched a major college basketball game and came away talking about the refs? There may be poor calls, but they are usually evenly distributed. Only in the NBA do people like wade, lebron and kobe work to a different set of rules.
In the Eastern Conference Finals, a single action of a ref, changed the outcome of the game (and ultimately the series). In overtime, wade blatantly raked Rondo across the face while Rondo attempted to make a lay up. It was not incidental contact. It kept him from scoring. A referee was directly in front of the play. Instead of a 2 point lead, miami was able to keep the tie, get the ball and advance with Rondo on the floor. This is not to suggest that this was the only call (think of the three quickies on Steemsma, Pierce's sixth, and the kick to Garnett by Wade- not to mention the 24 foul shots take by james, over forty by Miami, and the one foul called on lebron in the first four quarters).
In the Finals, the one-sideness of the calls impacted the way Oklahoma played defense. Anything short of an "Ole!" approach to "D" resulted in lebron or wade going to the foul line.
On the same day that New Orleans somehow got the first pick (wink, wink, nod, nod) , the NBA showed itself to be more akin to professional wrestling than to a first rate professional team sport.
It is truly a shame. Those of you old enough to remember know that it doesn't have to be this way. Referees like Earl Strom did a remarkable job. They rarely intruded into the flow of the game. They kept order, and were not afraid to hold all players accountable. The best thing about those games is that you didn't even think of the ref when you thought about the game.
What is happening in the NBA stinks. stern will not allow dissension. It seems pretty clear that he implemented his story line and lebron to won a championship. (I guess he needs to try to create another Jordan for the "good of the league".
The response of most writers and commentators is to take a condescending tone, and belittle the very thought that the NBA and it's commissioner may be less than ethical. They don't want to be associated with the hoi polloi that they consider "know nothing" homers who do their thinking below the neck line. They SHOULD, however, think of their own profession. Are they news people, or merely flaks for the league. I think we know the answer.
By the way, do you think that the fellow, who bought the New Orleans franchise, did so with some guarantee from stern that he would get the first pick? I'm just asking.
and Miami and South Beach are cesspools of Humanity. "Hyper-cosmopolitan":Is that another way of saying crime and drug infested?