The Cleveland Cavaliers will be looking for their fourth consecutive trip to the NBA Finals Sunday night. Cleveland takes on the Boston Celtics in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals At TD Garden and it’ll once again be a huge moment in the legacy of LeBron James.
James has had plenty of moments against Boston. The two that immediately stick out are the 2008 and 2012 postseason matchups, both meetings seeing the eventual NBA Champion moving on. But right now could be one of the biggest legacy games of LeBron’s career. He’s taking on a young Celtics team that is without Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward, a squad determined to claim their own piece of history by becoming the first team in eight years to dethrone LeBron in the East.
Kevin Love is out tonight due to being in the NBA’s concussion protocol, meaning Jeff Green will get the start in his absence. Love collided heads with Boston’s Jayson Tatum in the first quarter of Game 6 and missed the rest of the game.
Let’s look at our three keys to a Cavs victory and NBA Finals berth.
1. Follow The King- LeBron James is the best player on the planet for a reason. He’s magnificent year-round and incredibly reliable in crucial situations. That’s why the Cavs should trust in James for the 100th time this season in hopes he guides them to represent the Eastern Conference once again.
Once again #LeBronJames delivered an epic performance in an elimination game with 46pts in 46 minutes to keep the #Cavs season alive. @KingJames is now 6-1 in his last 7 elimination games for the @cavs averaging 38.8ppg-11rpg-9.1apg in those games! #WhateverItTakes #CavsCeltics pic.twitter.com/h3fcg46Cx0
— Kenny Roda (@TheKennyRoda) May 26, 2018
LeBron is nearly averaging a triple-double in elimination games, averaging close to forty points as well. He’s 6-1 in his last seven back-against-the-wall games as well, noted by WHBC’s Kenny Roda’s tweet above.
The Cavs aren’t sure who they’re going to get scoring from as a second option. But there isn’t a single question about who’s leading them into battle on Sunday.
2. Green’s A Go- Most Cavs fans rolled their eyes or let out a disappointing sigh when the news of Jeff Green starting broke on Sunday. But if you were to go off of last performances from anyone, Green had the third-best Cavaliers showing in Game 6 behind LeBron James and George Hill.
Green finished with fourteen points and two blocks in 31 minutes of action. He essentially played in a starting role because of Love’s early exit. His energy and execution was at a top level, something not always displayed by Green this season. It was there in full force Friday night, however.
If Green can bring even 75% of what he brought last game, the Cavs will be okay in Love’s absence.
3. House Of Horford- Al Horford has stepped up as the leader of the Boston Celtics since Irving and Hayward went out for the rest of the season. The All-Star forward has helped ease the younger guys into the postseason and has done so while maintaining success.
Horford has been exceptionally good at home. After being heavily Double-teamed in Game 6, Horford will more than likely be a point of emphasis for Brad Stevens tonight. The Cavs can’t allow him to get going or Marcus Morris and Aron Baynes will feed off of the paint positioning.
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