The Sixers and the Cavs Played the Most Insane Game of the NBA Season and I’m Still High From It

Well, the weekend has finally come to a close and what a weekend it was for Philadelphia sports. A lot has happened since the Sixers and the Cavaliers squared off on Friday night for the rights to the 3rd seed in the Eastern Conference. The Flyers clinched a playoff spot, the Phillies ran up 20 runs in a game, and the Sixers notched their 14th straight. Through all the success Philly sports shared this weekend, I keep going back to that Friday night NBA showcase. As soon as the game ended (and we could breathe again), I wanted to write a blog post. I had six million different ideas on what to write about in regards to that game but watching Marco Bellinelli getting switched off onto Lebron throughout the second half had turned my brain into scrambled eggs. Even now, after what feels like a month worth of Philly sports action has happened, I still cannot organize my thoughts to write about that game. The only way to write about a game as chaotic as that, is to match its chaos; writing anything about the match-up as it comes to mind. Here goes nothin:




I knew a big lead was coming, but I never imagined it being that big: Lebron James has played in seven straight NBA Finals. As mind blowing as that is, it has assured that no moment is too big for him. A regular season game at this point is just that, a game to get him to the games that actually matter. For the Sixers, Friday night was the biggest game they had played since June 2001. The adrenaline coursing through the Wells Fargo Center crowd was matched by the Sixers, it was not matched by the Cavaliers. That level of energy from the young 76ers was expected, the lead ballooning to THIRTY, no one expected that.

It could have been a 30, 40, or 50 point lead…you knew that comeback was coming: When the Cavaliers got the lead down to 23 at the half, you felt a little uneasy with how that ended. Despite putting up almost 80 in the first half, the Sixers had left the door open. When Lebron came out in the second half and hits a pull up three and then all of a sudden the lead was cut in half to fifteen, your stomach was in your throat. What is interesting about this collapse is that it wasn’t really one at all. The pre-Christmas Sixers blew leads all the time and they had no one to blame but themselves. We just had to sit on our hands and watch it happen like some sick sports terminal illness. This time, it wasn’t a collapse. It was the best player alive telling the up and comers that it was still his time and his league. Ask the Celtics Big 3 or the playoff Nets how it goes when Lebron wants to make a statement.

Ben Simmons, the “Fresh Prince”, became a star before our eyes: Ben Simmons had the marquee moment of his young career that night. Yes, the triple doubles are hella impressive but in the biggest game of the season, when the lead was dwindling, the offense went through him and he delivered. This kid is ‘future face of the league’ special.

https://twitter.com/LegionHoops/status/982401474482196480

When JJ Redick hit that dagger three to put the Sixers up 128-120, I thought that was the dagger: I thought that was it. I thought I could exhale for the first time since the 2nd quarter. I thought in that moment when he hit that three, everything we had been through was worth it. Imagine being in that moment and being one of those “the fans will never come back” people. Every made field goal down the stretch, the crowd erupts:

I CANNOT BELIEVE WE FOULED LEBRON SHOOTING A THREE AT THE END: I understand the premise of fouling a player up three while in the penalty, but I still hate it. I am a worst case scenario guy and well, fouling Lebron in that situation was the WORST case scenario. What it led to was a classic Lebron finish to a game. He absolutely took over in the second half, dropping 44 on the Sixers en route to a triple double and a homicide of Ersan Ilysova…but then he misses the free throw. With Lebron, there always seems to be a “but”. After the utter domination of one of the best defensive teams in the league, one single missed free throw is what everyone is going to want to talk about. It epitomizes how his career has went. I guess we will get used to that while he is here next year.



We won, I can breathe. This is special: I swear, 9 times out of 10 that tip-in off Lebron’s purposely missed free throw goes in. Fortunately, this year in Philadelphia, we are living in that 10th time, where everything goes right. It is all falling our way, all at once…no reason to believe it won’t stay that way once the playoffs begin.

By Aidan Powers | April 8, 2018