LeBron James had another chasedown block in the playoffs Wednesday — well, officially, at least.
Maybe his rejection of Victor Oladipo's layup attempt in the closing seconds of Pacers-Cavaliers Game 5 was instead goaltending that officials missed. That's Oladipo's impression, anyway.
NBA PLAYOFFS: Are Cavs beyond saving? Not if LeBron can help it
"Hit the backboard. Then he blocked it," Oladipo told reporters postgame, per Cleveland.com. "Replays, I guess you guys can see, it was a tough play at the time for him, but, it was a goaltend. It's hard to even speak on it. It just sucks, honestly. It really sucks."
Judge for yourself:
James, of course, saw the play differently.
"Of course I didn't think it was a goaltend," James told reporters, per Cleveland.com. "I just, I try to make plays like that all the time and, I mean, [Oladipo] made a heck of a move. Got me leaning right and he went left and I just tried to use my recovery speed and get back up there and make a play on the ball and I was able to make a play."
GAME 5: Takeaways from the Cavs' win
Officials ruled it a clean block (and, as Cleveland.com noted, could not review the play), the Cavs gained possession with three seconds remaining, and then James hit a game-winning 3-pointer as time ran out in regulation, giving the Cavs a 98-95 victory in Game 5 and a 3-2 lead in their best-of-seven NBA Eastern Conference first-round playoff series. Game 6 will be Friday in Indianapolis.
