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LeBron James not sweating 2-2 tie in Eastern Conference Finals

LeBron James

LeBron James, the once-effervescent youth, is now the calm veteran of a thousand battles in the NBA.

As such, the Cleveland Cavaliers star forward isn’t too concerned with how things have gone the past couple of games in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Toronto Raptors. Speaking with reporters on Wednesday before the pivotal Game 5, tied at 2-2, he expressed a sense of serenity and gratitude.

Just a sense of calmness,” James said of his mindset in preparation for Game 5, via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “That’s all. Just a very calm moment for myself, personally. I relish this opportunity to be a part of the postseason once again, to be 2-2 on my home floor, so, a sense of calmness.”

Obviously, he has good reason for being so calm right now, despite what’s been a remarkable turnaround by the Raptors the past two games in Canada.

James has been involved in pretty much every conceivable scenario one could imagine since his first playoff experience way back in 2006 when he was just 21 years of age.

“I’ve been on both sides, I’ve been on the side that’s went up 3-2, I’ve been on the side that’s went down 3-2,” James said. “When the series is tied 2-2, that’s a pivotal game. Obviously. We all know that. We want to come out with the mindset and the understanding of how important this game is to both teams and have a sense of urgency from the beginning.”

Now a grizzled vet at the age of 31, he’s played in 190 postseason games and knows how quickly a series can turn from one game to the next. Per McMenamin, his teams have gone 6-6 in these pivotal Game 5s, though his teams have also gone 17-0 when going up 2-0 as the Cavaliers did this series.

And despite the fact that Toronto appears to have all the momentum right now, the fact remains that the Raptors must still win two games in Cleveland to beat the Cavs. Toronto is also quite inexperienced when it comes to postseason play and looked inept in its first two games at Quicken Loans Arena.

No wonder LeBron James appears to have not a care in the world right now. We’ll revisit this conversation after Wednesday’s Game 5 to see how he’s feeling once more, as things will have changed, one way or another, heading back to Air Canada Centre for Game 6.

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