The 20th time but still a special occasion
The dust had the time to settle after the Miami Heat took Game 7 on their home court to secure the 2013 NBA Championship after a thrilling best-of-seven final against the San Antonio Spurs. However, it will take plenty more time for the players and the fans to wake up from this beautiful dream and for MVP LeBron James, it is an unforgettable period.
The final shot James made in Game 7 resembled the epic move Michael Jordan made for the Chicago Bulls in the 1998 finals, against the Utah Jazz, and in an interview for the Sports Illustrated, he talks more about the most iconic basketball player and himself. This is the 20th time he’s face is on the cover and there is no better reason than for winning his second consecutive trophy.
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he magazine released on Wednesday shows James looking down at his Larry O’Brien Trophy, smiling. Inside, he mentions that he spent some time watching Jordan’s game-deciding shot. In the last game of the series against the Spurs, James made a jumper with just 27.9 seconds left on the clock which gave Miami a 92-88 lead and secured the victory; San Antonio didn’t manage to score any more points after that point. He mentions that the shot was not at the same magnitude but that he definitely thought about Michael Jordan when making it. He said that “It was an MJ moment.” and after pausing for a moment, he added that “It was an LJ moment.”
Being the best player in the NBA right now, it is pretty common for James to be compared to the legendary Michael Jordan and the debate of which superstar would be better has been going on for years. The two-time champion mentioned several times that it is humbling for him to be compared to Jordan and he joined the Twitter debate in February by stating that his not MJ, he is LJ.
Small injuries and team building
Also covered in the interview for Sports Illustrated, James mentions that when he woke up after Game 7, he realized just how many small injuries he had sustained throughout the series. With no time to even pay attention to them during the most exciting series of his life, he certainly started feeling them once everything was over. Small injuries and bruises made most of his body hurt, especially on his back, elbows and ankle.
The promise that Erik Spoelstra, the coach for the Miami Heat, made the players make to one another was also discussed by James. He mentioned that he took the postseason tasks very seriously and signed the contract “like it was a check”, with his formal signature and not like a hurried autograph.
When the Baltimore-San Francisco NFL final was taking place, the Miami Heat were scheduled to be in the air, on their way to their next game, with no option to watch the game. However, James persuaded the team management to stay a few more hours in Toronto and watch the Super Bowl. This turned out to be a very important moment for the team as it brought them closer together and they then went on a 25-game winning streak.
As far as the future goes, the MVP will not be thinking about becoming a free agent again until the 2014 season ends. To end the piece for SI, he states that he is another person on and off the court and that he will not think about the moment his contract expires until the time actually comes.
Online betting with cards
With the NBA season now over, gamblers can start betting on the 2014 Championship where LeBron’s Heat is once again favored to win the trophy. For even more action over the internet, online poker can be the perfect solution and there are certainly plenty of options to benefit from.
The top Mac poker sites make it very easy to enjoy the action at the virtual tables and take down those big pots. Reviews of the biggest names in the industry allow you to take your pick from the list, depending on what you are looking for. There are also reliable sites that welcome players from the United States so there will no problems in cashing in the large bonuses and withdrawing the winnings.
