The Miami Heat MVP carefully planned his lead-up to Game 7 of the NBA Finals. One thing is clear: He'll be thinking about the task at hand. So will all the stars, who must step up now.
MIAMI — LeBron James had his Wednesday night planned, except for sleep, which may or not have been a part of it. The anticipation of a Game 7 in the NBA Finals might not induce proper rest.
"If I get any sleep, (Game 7) will be played in my head," James said. "It's just who I am, how I am. But I won't be too serious. I won't go into a bunker when I get back home.
"It's going to be lighthearted. I'm going to spend a lot of time tonight with my friends and family, like I always do the night before a game. We're going to laugh and joke about things that have happened in the past.
"My two boys are here. So they're not going to let me be too serious. They're going to make me watchSpongeBob (SquarePants) or something at 9."
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How emotions — positive or negative — simmer and influence players is not easy to predict.
Following the Heat's dramatic, come-from-behind 103-100 overtime victory against the San Antonio Spurs in Game 6 Tuesday and headed into Thursday's Game 7 — the cliffhanger to a wild, fun and exciting Finals — the Heat seemed relieved and thrilled to have one more game.
"It's kind of like you have a second chance on life. You're not going to waste it. We were revived. We were dead, and we brought ourselves back to life," Heat forward Shane Battier said. "And we're happy to be in the situation. We know we still have a lot more work to do, that just to be here, we're going to play I think the best basketball we've ever played together (Thursday)."
The Spurs seem dejected about the loss and struggling to find a way to bounce back.
"I'm still down," Spurs guard Manu Ginobili said. "A blow like that, it's not easy to get back up. But after 12 hours now, I feel a little better, knowing that we have another chance, that we can do so many things better and that we are in a Game 7 of the NBA Finals. There's not much more than that."
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There's not much more than that, and there is so much more than that in a series that has had a delicious sampling of almost everything: from the dramatic (overtime) to the unexpected (hello, Danny Green) to the whimsical (Mike Miller's three-pointer with one shoe on) to the predictable (James getting skewered and praised, not only game to game but possession to possession) to the vintage (Tim Duncan, are you 37 or 27?) to the ridiculous (yes, that's you, Heat fans who left American Airlines Arena with 30 seconds left and the Heat trailing 94-89 in Game 6).
Don't forget James' headband, which he played without for most of the fourth quarter and all of overtime in Game 6. James personified it. "I'll probably start off with it, man. A little superstitious. If it gets knocked off, then me and him will have a discussion if he will return," James said.
James might have a conversation with his headband, which has a parody Twitter account: @lebronsheadband.
So welcome to Game 7 of a series dominated by big names and personalities, and the spotlight shines brightest on James. Every series is an unnecessary final judgment on his career, even though he has several seasons left. That's just the way it is.
"That's OK," James said. "It won't stop me from loving the game, playing at a high level, doing it for my teammates, putting that uniform on. ... Every time I go into my locker room and see the 'James' on the back of an NBA jersey, I'm like 'Wow!' No criticism can deter me from playing this game because of that. ... The fact that I'm doing what I'm doing and doing it for my teammates, it's all that matters."
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He contemplated the stakes, aware that a win is just as much a possibility as a loss.
"The moment is going to be grand," James said. "I want to go down as one of the greatest. I want our team to go down as one of the greatest teams. And we have an opportunity to do that. Haven't been many people to win back-to-back championships. It's so hard. It's the hardest thing. I said last year it was the hardest thing I've ever done, winning my first. Last year doesn't even come close to what we've gone through in this postseason and in these Finals."
James has been fantastic in elimination games. For a while in Game 6, it didn't look like James had it in him. He recovered after shooting 3-for-12 through three quarters and rescued Miami just in time, finishing with his fourth Finals triple-double: 32 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists with 16 of those points coming in the fourth quarter.
After 11 elimination games, James is averaging 31.5 points, 10 rebounds and 6.8 assists, and he has won his past four elimination games, starting with the final two games of last season's Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics.
"I'll be there (Thursday) night," James said. "I'm going to give it my all. I'm going to leave everything on the floor. Whatever happens, happens. I'll be satisfied with that."
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The Heat rely heavily on James, and he bears the great responsibility with much more aplomb than he did two, three seasons ago.
But the Heat constructed a roster centered on James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh for titles, and the Heat will need their Big 3 to produce. Yes, role players for both teams will need to produce. But if the stars — the big names, the future Hall of Famers who have helped carry the NBA for a decade — don't rise, it will be more difficult to win.
Wade now has two bum knees after colliding with Manu Ginobili in the first half on Tuesday. His bruised right knee is now accompanied by a sore and swollen left knee.
"There's one game left," Wade said. "Whatever you have inside of you, you muster it up, you give it. So I'll be fine."
After struggling to guard San Antonio forward Tim Duncan in the first half, Bosh held him to five points. With the Heat keying on Green on the perimeter, the importance of Bosh's defense increased.
Can he replicate the second-half effort?
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It's a more complicated topic for the Spurs. Who exactly is their Big 3? Duncan and Tony Parker for sure. The third is a wild-card. It could be Ginobili or Green or Kawhi Leonard.
Ginobili is down. The Heat had Green on lockdown in Game 6, but he already has set a Finals record for three-pointers made. Leonard quietly has had a fine series. Who can join Parker and Duncan as difference-makers?
Parker insists San Antonio will recover from the devastating loss.
"Between the Big Three, it's a long career, a lot of up and downs and different stuff," Parker said. "So I'm not really worried about our team bouncing back tomorrow."
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The Spurs had a team dinner after a loss to free their mind from the game.
"The other option is a bunch of us go back to our rooms and sit in our rooms and sit there by ourselves and beat yourself up," Duncan said. "It's always good to be around teammates and kind of get some stuff out in the open. We did exactly that. As I said, we'll be ready to rock."
But you have to wonder about the emotional and physical toll on the Spurs? The victory was so close, NBA staffers were in position to roll out the championship stage and cordon off the court with yellow tape.
There's only one way to find out: Toss up the ball and play Game 7.
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