CLEVELAND — LeBron James pegged his state of mind as “calm” before Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals Wednesday.
James' Cavaliers then routed the Raptors 116-78 at Quicken Loans Arena. James, who has seen almost every possible Game 5 scenario, finished with 23 points, six rebounds and eight assists, alleviating any need for the narrative that Cleveland absolutely must experience anxiety whenever the opportunity presents itself.
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That’s not as Cleveland as much as you think it is. It’s certainly not James. If only he would have ripped a one-liner from Walter Sobchak in “The Big Lebowski” in this situation:
“I’m perfectly calm ... Calmer than you are.”
He played like it. James didn’t let the game come to him this time. He let the game come to everybody else in the first quarter, and Cleveland threw another first-round knockout punch with a 37-19 lead after 12 minutes.
James played the role of a facilitator with four assists, a few of them to Kevin Love, who had 12 points and didn’t miss a shot. James deferred to Kyrie Irving, who ignited a 15-2 flurry with nine points. That first quarter alone quashed any momentum Toronto thought they built with two home wins.
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James continued his work with the second team in the second quarter, and the more of the same unfolded. Matthew Dellavedova threw James an alley-oop for a slam. James returned the favour with Richard Jefferson. Love later threw a full-court touchdown pass to James, who finished with a slam. Cleveland had this one put away by halftime; it led 65-34 at the break. James had a dozen points and a dozen rebound-plus-assists.
James poured it on a little in the third quarter, from a coast-to-coast dunk to a pair of three-pointers. He hit his first four shots before a heat-check three-point try missed. The Cavaliers led 100-60 after three, and James spent most of the fourth quarter in the same place he’s been for most of the home games in this series — on the bench.
He’s had signature Game 5 performances in the past; the 48-point effort against the Pistons in 2007 is the go-to reference point. He did the same with Miami against Indiana in 2013 with 30 points in a 90-79 Heat victory in a series the Pacers would take to seven games. Cleveland had to have this game, and James made sure it took it down.
What’s different this time is the Cavaliers annihilated the Raptors in the pivot game, and James didn’t have to dump 30 or 48 points to get there. In fact, this Game 5 might get lost in the James anthology later on even if it’s one of his better performances in the series.
Or his performance for the entire series, for that matter. James is shooting 48-of-76 (63.2 percent) from the floor for the series. That includes 4-of-15 from three-point range, so it’s 44-of-61 (72.1 percent) from two-point range. He also has 40 rebounds and 34 assists. That’s top-shelf play, and it has put Toronto in a high-pressure situation now.
Yet this game wasn’t about James. It was Love’s turn to silence the critics with 25 points after a rough two games on the road. It was about Irving finding his scoring touch, too. James predicted after Game 2 this group would face adversity.
They did, and they responded big time. Cleveland is one step closer to its second straight NBA Finals.
Maybe it’s not about matching the intensity. Maybe it’s about matching James’ state of mind.
He’s perfectly calm. Calmer than you are, anyway.
