LeBron James is revered for his basketball IQ, with some believing he should be the next head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. Since the Purple and Gold have been eliminated from the NBA Playoffs for weeks now, he has had plenty of time to share his thoughts and dissect every key in-game decision.
The All-time scoring leader was not shy about expressing his opinion during Tuesday's Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Boston Celtics (No. 1 seed) and the Indiana Pacers (No. 6). What looked to be a sensational road victory for Indy turned into one of the franchise's most bitter implosions, and a massively missed opportunity.
James thinks the Pacers' 133-128 loss to the Celtics was completely avoidable. According to him, the incredibly difficult 3-pointer Jaylen Brown hit from the corner to send the contest into overtime should have never been allowed to happen.
“And ya'll still wanna know why I would foul up 3 EVERY SINGLE TIME??” James posted on X after the stunning turn of events. The four-time NBA Finals MVP knows from firsthand experience how a team's decision to let its opponent attempt a game-tying bucket can alter an entire series. He and the Miami Heat have an extra title because of that exact blunder, which the San Antonio Spurs devastatingly made back in 2013.
But James might be simplifying this specific situation.
Pacers made another critical mistake that cost them Game 1
Indiana had multiple chances to clinch the upset win, so it feels a little short-sighted to hone in on this particular play, especially since fouling in that situation is not typically considered a no-brainer. There was 8.5 seconds left in regulation before Boston took the ball out of a timeout. If the Pacers elect to foul with that much time remaining, it could backfire on them. More importantly, though, the C's did not give them much of a choice.
Brown quickly gets the inbound pass from Jrue Holiday and sets up to shoot, causing defender Pascal Siakam to cautiously refrain from initiating contact. While the result is obviously disastrous, fans should understand why the 2019 champ and two-time All-Star forward did not want to risk handing the Celtics a potential four-point play.
It is unsurprising that LeBron James would choose to focus on this moment given that he and JJ Redick recently discussed the topic of fouling up three on the latest episode of their podcast, “Mind the Game.” But he should probably devote an appropriate amount of scrutiny to the sequence that preceded the Jaylen Brown shot.
The Pacers were painfully unorganized on a critical inbound pass, as Andrew Nembhard (12 points, seven assists) threw an ill-advised ball that Brown disrupted. Siakam couldn't come up with it and lost it out of bounds. Rick Carlisle and Indiana's decision not to use a timeout, along with players' inability to break free from the defense, afforded Boston an unforeseen breath of oxygen.
The championship favorites capitalized, like most great teams do, and bought themselves an extra five minutes. Jayson Tatum scored 10 of his game-high 36 points in overtime to kick in the final bricks of this Pacers' collapse.
They must immediately learn from these inexcusable blunders.
Indiana has to tighten things up if it is going to conquer this giant
Just as LeBron James has benefited from major gaffes, he has also suffered the consequences of them. J.R. Smith inexplicably dribbled out the clock instead of going for the win against the Golden State Warriors in the 2018 Finals. The Cleveland Cavaliers lost in OT and were unceremoniously swept. Although this Boston squad does not come with the Dubs' sparkling track record, Indy has little room for error.
The Pacers cannot hand the Celtics so many gifts when there is already a disparity in quality between the two teams. It is borderline miraculous that they nearly left TD Garden with a W despite committing 22 turnovers and attempting 20 less free throws than their opponents. Another outing like that would presumably go much differently than Tuesday night's nail-biter.
On the plus side, the Celtics continue to show some vulnerability in the NBA Playoffs. They recovered effortlessly after losing on their home floor in each of the first two rounds, but Carlisle's feisty group might not stay down as easily as the Heat and Cavs did.
Tyrese Haliburton, Pascal Siakam and Myles Turner combined for 72 points in Game 1, and Andrew Nembhard, Obi Toppin and T.J. McConnell all contributed valuable production. Adding sound judgment to the mix can possibly lead to something special.
LeBron James and the rest of the basketball world will be tuning in to see if the Pacers can mend their self-inflicted wounds and punch back at the Celtics on Thursday.
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