LeBron James was at the butt-end of plenty of jokes following a forgettable performance in last year’s NBA Finals.
That all stemmed from James’ embarrassing performances in the fourth quarter throughout the series. On Sunday night and on an admittedly much smaller stage, James reverted to his old ways.
With the Eastern Conference trailing by a pair in the All-Star Game in Orlando with just 16.3 seconds to play, East head coach Tom Thibodeau called a play for Nets point guard Deron Williams to shoot a 3-pointer that would have given the East the lead. James and his East teammates ran the play to perfection except for the fact that Williams missed the shot.
A wild chase for the rebound ensued with James actually coming away from the ball at the top of the key, only for him to pass up a game-tying or game-winning shot attempt to force a pass into traffic that was picked off.
See it all below in the video via SportsGrid.
As you see, Lakers guard Kobe Bryant and Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony decided to have a little fun with James following the play, apparently taunting him some. What exactly were they saying, though?
According to Yahoo! basketball writer Adrian Wojnarowski, Bryant was begging James to “Shoot the [expletive] ball!”
James admitted as much following the game.
“Yeah, he was telling me to shoot it. I wish I could have that one back,” he said.
As has been the case in the past, James’ late-game disappearing act overshadowed an impressive performance up to that point. The Heat forward tied Kevin Durant with a game-high 36 points.
Photo of the Day
Is it OK to blame LeBron for this one?
Quote of the Day
“Not as closely as some of the most ardent fans. But I have some great friends that are NASCAR team owners.”
–Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney on how closely he follows NASCAR
Tweet of the Day
Let me go check. … Nope, nothing. Sorry.
@NESN Looking for a Don & Jerry bobbledesk – any left in a storage closet somewhere?
— CK (@chriskelley81) February 26, 2012
Video of the Day
Dude, you’re wearing sunglasses. Inside. While bowling. Shut up.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zO3XTypcFc&w=640&h=360]
