MIAMI — LeBron James had his white headband and his jump shot. And now he has his second straight NBA championship after a 95-88 Game 7 victory over the Spurs at AmericanAirlines Arena.
The Spurs laid off James and dared him to shoot jumpers and he finally found his perimeter mojo in Game 7 of The NBA Finals, racking 37 points and grabbing 12 rebounds as the Heat became back-to-back champions, and the Miami Dream Team appears on its way to a dynasty.
“This team is amazing,’’ James said. “The vision that I had when I decided to come here is all coming true.’’
Miami Heat’s LeBron James holds the Larry O’Brien Trophy and the Bill Russell MVP trophy (L) after the Heat defeated the San Antonio Spurs to win Game 7 of the NBA Finals Thursday. (REUTERS)
Miami’s Dwyane Wade hugs San Antonio Spurs power forward Tim Duncan as the Heat’s LeBron James and the Spurs’ Tony Parker look on following Game 7. (REUTERS)
James hit the backbreaker 18-footer from the right side with 27.9 seconds left to give the Heat a 92-88 lead and send the arena into a frenzy. James finished 12-of-23 and made 5-of-10 3-pointers to earn his second Finals MVP award, receiving the trophy from Bill Russell with white and red confetti falling from the ceiling.
LeBron’s legacy was on the line last night and he passed with flying colors as the three-year union of James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh now has two titles and three Finals appearances.
James — who ditched his headband after three lackluster quarters in Game 6 and sparked a rally in the fourth quarter — had help from Wade, who pulled off some mid-range magic and finished with 25 points.
Holding the MVP trophy in his right hand and the championship trophy in his left, James said from the on-court podium, seemingly angry at all his critics, “I can’t worry about what everybody says about me. I’m LeBron James from Akron, Ohio. I’m from the inner-city. I’m not even supposed to be here. Whatever anyone says about me off the court, don’t matter. I ain’t got no worries.’’
The fans roared once again and soon champagne flowed in the Heat locker room.
“They played Hall of Fame basketball tonight,’’ Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said of James and Wade.
James is now 2-2 in the Finals, having avenged getting swept by the Spurs when he was with the Cavaliers six years ago.
“I said before the series I was a better player than I was last time I played the Spurs, though it didn’t look it for the first two games, but I stuck with it,” James said.
Asked if he’s unstoppable when he’s making jump shots, James said, “Yes I am. After 2 1/2 games [I said] this is how they’re going to play me the rest of the series. I looked back and said don’t abandon what you did all year.’’
“The story is yet to be seen how many he’ll win,’’ Wade said.
The Spurs got nothing from point guard Tony Parker (3-of-12) and early Finals sensation Danny Green of North Babylon went bust, shooting a John Starks-like 1-of-12. Parker was benched with 27.9 seconds left as the Spurs were trying to rally from four points down.
Wade, who played with two bum knees, now has three titles.
“This is why we came together,’’ Wade said. “Two championships in three years is a great achievement. It took everything we had as a team.’’
With a confident follow-through and no hesitation, James banged in another jumper with 5:37 left, with Duncan laying off him, to put the Heat up 83-77 with 5:37 left.
“You’re always happy for guys when they’re so dedicated and we all know his work ethic,’’ Miami’s Erik Spoelstra said of James. “That was the shot that was going to be open. The biggest game, biggest moment, those were the shots he hit. It became time.”
Miami’s Shane Battier, critical in the Heat’s title last June against the Thunder, hit his first five 3-pointers and finished 6-of-8 for 18 points. That allowed Miami to survive a scoreless, foul-plagued night from Chris Bosh.
It looked over for the Spurs when Duncan threw it away and Battier hit another transition 3-pointer to put Miami up 88-82 with 3:20 left.
But the Spurs wouldn’t die. The young stud Kawhi Leonard (19 points, 16 rebounds) bagged a 3-pointer from the right wing to close the deficit to 90-88 with 2:00 left.
The Spurs had their chances thereafter. Leonard missed a potential go-head 3-pointer. On the next possession, after Mario Chalmers bricked two free throws, Duncan couldn’t sink what he termed “a bunny” turnaround in the lane and missed the follow-tip with 45 seconds to go. It was completely over after Ginobili’s pass was intercepted by James with 23.8 seconds left. James then hit two more free throws to ice it.
“Last year when I was sitting up here, with my first championship, I said it was the toughest thing I had ever done,” James said. “This year I’ll tell you I was absolutely wrong. This was the toughest.”