Heat star LeBron James probably doesn't need to give fans any more reason to hate him, but he gave them even more ammunition Tuesday night with his Broadway-like acting job in Game 4 of the NBA Finals.
With time winding down in the first quarter and the shot clock about to expire, James was "bumped" by Mavericks center Brendan Haywood, causing him to lose his footing and stumble out of bounds. Dallas coach Rick Carlisle received a technical soon after for arguing the call.
The replay, though, showed that Carlisle had legitimate beef, and it promptly led to a Jeff Van Gundy rant on the amount of acting that goes on in the NBA.
"Listen, as a coach you have every right to voice your displeasure," Van Gundy said during the Game 4 broadcast. "Those types of plays, to me, are starting to make our game a farce.
"I want there to be a severe penalty so that every time I go back on the film as the dean of discipline and I watch ever play and possession, those flagrant acts of acting, I am hammering," he added. "It's infuriating when you get a technical and you're right."
But in the end, Dallas would be the one to get the last laugh. The Mavericks overcame a nine-point, fourth-quarter deficit to win the game 86-83 and even the series at two games apiece, holding King James to a career playoff low eight points in the process.
Check out the video below to see LeBron's Academy Award-caliber performance.
