LeBron James played great against Toronto but a couple of incidents in the game didn’t sit well here
Just a couple of notes on LeBron James and the Miami Cavaliers, er, Heat on Saturday night following their 120-103 win over the Toronto Raptors. It was the same old James in many ways as the Heat played without Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh and closely resembled the Cleveland Cavaliers of years past. James was a one-man wrecking crew as he scored 38 points to maintain his career scoring average of 28.0 points against Toronto, and he dished out 11 assists on the night for good measure.
But there were a couple of observations regarding James that didn't sit well here. During the fourth quarter when he went for a highlight-reel, reverse dunk against Ed Davis, the Toronto rookie fouled him eliciting a "what are you trying to do?" response from James after the infraction was called. The look on Davis face was "hey man, I'm not going to be a part of your highlight reel." It always bothers me when guys go hard to the cup and expect no resistance. James has to understand who he is and how hard people are going to play against him.
However the second incident was more troubling as James seemed to be "barking back" at Erik Spoelstra in the first half when a play call was made that he didn't agree with at the time. James wanted a certain play run and the coach called another one. After the play was run unsuccessfully and a subsequent timeout called, James was visibly upset with the coach. I had my suspicions confirmed by an advance scout at the halftime. It seems all that was missing was the infamous "bump" of the head coach...
There are some Raptors fans desperately trying to forget the night of January 22, 2006. It's a night that will haunt some Toronto fans as it stands in the annals of NBA history. I sat courtside in the Staples Centre in Los Angeles as Kobe Bryant poured in 81 points, notching the second-highest scoring output in league history. You can hear how my broadcast partner Eric Smith and I described it that night. Unlike Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point night this one was different. There was no video of "the dipper" that night but Kobe's feat was captured for all to see and hear.
I can see that some Raptor fans take it as a slap in the face that this anniversary is celebrated annually but there is another side that says it's simply part of history. As Jalen Rose, who was on the court that night and was dinged for 20 points by Bryant, said when talking about it on ESPN, it's not like it was a scrub on a nothing team. It was the Lakers and it was Kobe, who will go down as one of the all-time greats in NBA history. Currently, I think basketball historians are looking more at the accomplishment than anything else, regardless of the opponent. Unfortunately for Toronto fans, it happened to be the Raptors.
Dave McMenamin, who covers the Lakers for ESPN Los Angeles, had Kobe's reflections on the night in this piece on Saturday.
