LeBron James’ historic chasedown block in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals was truly one of the standout moments of his career, but he recently acknowledged his teammate JR Smith for his crucial role.
In a showdown between the Warriors and Cavs, Stephen Curry and Andre Iguodala had a two-on-one advantage, with LeBron trailing the play.
Cavs guard Smith defended against Curry and Iguodala, forcing Iggy to adjust his layup.
This gave LeBron the opportunity to make an incredible chasedown block, tying the game at 89-all with less than two minutes left.
LeBron recounted the events on his podcast, Mind the Game.
“As I’m running, all I’m thinking is, ‘Swish [JR Smith], do not foul him,’” James told JJ Redick. “So, anytime you see me trailing the play, just give me a slight adjustment from the offensive player, and I will track it down. Don’t foul. Don’t foul. I told my teammates all year, ‘If you see me hustling, just make them change their shot a bit.’
“And Swish gets a lot of criticism because of the mistake he made later on, not understanding the time and score,” James continued. “But he executed perfectly. He made Iggy alter his shot just enough, and that’s all I needed.”
LeBron and the Cavs made history by becoming the first team to come back from a 3-1 Finals deficit and defeating the defending champion Golden State Warriors 93-89.
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Source https://basketballforever.com/2024/04/10/lebron-james-credits-jr-smith-for-role-in-iconic-chasedown-block
