LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers moves the ball against Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors in the second half in Game 1 of the 2016 NBA Finals at ORACLE Arena on June 2, 2016 in Oakland, California. Ezra Shaw/Getty Images/AFP
THE GREATEST warriors, immortal athletes and squads are born and molded out of fierce, killing rivalries.
These monumental feuds are all unforgettable, stored forever in the memory bank of amazed spectators for instant recall at the proper moment.
Those who had to recollect what could be gained back from the Thrilla in Manila of Oct. 1, 1975 were doing so both in grief and in celebration.
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The Thrilla, for one, helped immortalize Ali as The Greatest, mainly on the mythical blood and thunder of battle in his third encounter with lifetime rival Joe Frazier.
At the end of the fight, which was stopped after Frazier—bloodied, battered, puffed, wasted—was prevented from leaving his stool for the 15th and last round, Ali froze, fainted and dropped to the floor.
In an unforgettable postfight admission, Ali mumbled “the championship felt like death.”
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Anyway, out in the NBA, the most memorable rivalries, both of teams and individuals, may not be written in blood, but were always determined on thunder of determination, dedication, courage and skills.
It’s no exaggeration to state that the big names, the greatest stars and teams in the NBA, had to go through the hell of battle on their way to legendary enthronement: New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Antonio, etc.
Bill Russell, Jerry West, Larry Bird, Julius Irving, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, etc.
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In the current NBA Finals, there’s the incredible scoring virtuoso Stephen Curry who could, at the rate he has scored and carried his team, end up ranked among the greatest, if not after the current championship play-offs, a little later.
Turning to LeBron James, hasn’t this steamroller of a scoring machine claimed, after his overpowering contribution to Miami Heat fame, that he could be greater than Jordan?
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It’s like this. As things stood before the start of the NBA Finals between Golden State and Cleveland, James had appeared poised to reclaim full superstardom, now that he has two healthy backups in Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving.
In Game 1 of the title playoffs, James had some great moments in his team’s losing effort against Golden State.
Too bad that he allowed himself to be imprisoned by the muscular defensive hulk Andre Iguodola in the closing crucial minutes of the championship series opener.
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James in Monday’s Game 2 in Oakland, to borrow a phrase from game pundits, was a no-show.
OK, he was there, but he did all the lousy things that helped make his team fall two straight in the NBA Finals.
It was a monumentally horrible James that led Warriors fans heading home with still one full quarter left in the mismatch.
Now, James has no choice but do and give his best, or what’s left of it, in Game 3 in Cleveland.
It’s his duty to assure this is still the thrill NBA Finals, not a garbage basketball theater, we continue to watch.