James has the Heat on the cusp
by Iwedi Ojinmah 19 June 2012, 09:55
For the second straight season, the Miami Heat hold a 2-1 lead in the NBA Finals. There’s a glaring difference this time around — James is playing at the top of his game.
He has his team on fire and will try and will them within one win of a championship on Tuesday night, when Miami plays host to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 4 of this title series.
"We’re a totally different team than we were last year when we were up 2-1," James said Monday. "We’re a totally different team. We understand what it takes to win, we’ve used that motivation, and we will continue to use that motivation.”
Miami lost Game 4 in Dallas last year, the start of a three-game slide that ended with the Mavericks hoisting the title trophy.
So the Thunder know a 2-1 deficit in a series is hardly insurmountable, even though the home-court roles are reversed this time around. And if Oklahoma City needed more proof, all the Thunder need do is remember the Western Conference finals when they lost the first two games to San Antonio, becoming the 19th and 20th entries on the Spurs’ incredible winning streak.
The Spurs didn’t win another game the rest of the way. So it can be done and with a superstar like Durant it will not be impossible for the Thunder to bounce back.
Hard yes, but not impossible.
