After the Cleveland Cavaliers lost to the Golden State Warriors for the third game in a row Wednesday night, LeBron James finally admitted what we already knew. The man is absolutely exhausted, which was something Draymond Green noticed even before the fourth quarter of Game 3.
“I’m drained right now, both mentally and physically,” James said, via Shams Charania of The Vertical.
James played 46 minutes of Wednesday night’s 48-minute affair. A game that featured, once again, a torrid pace of play in which the Golden State Warriors’ unbelievably talented roster ended up outlasting Cleveland with an 11-0 closeout in the final three minutes to win by five.
A final three minutes that head coach Tyronn Lue said he didn’t even remember afterwards, showing just how devastating it really was for the Cavs.
That LeBron James has been the only thing keeping Cleveland afloat in this series is readily apparent to all who watch. He’s played in all but 19 minutes of the first three games, and every time James leaves the court, Golden State begins to romp.
“It’s the most firepower I’ve played [against] in my career,” James said late Wednesday. “I’ve played against some great teams, but I don’t think no team has had this type of firepower.
“You got to play A-plus-plus.”
Wednesday night, James scored 39 points, nabbed 11 rebounds, dished nine assists and was the only Cavs starter to post a positive plus/minus.
Take a close look at the plus/minus numbers for every @cavs starter not named @KingJames in Game 3. #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/RkJSh7wkKi
— Sportsnaut (@Sportsnaut) June 8, 2017
It’s no wonder James is drained.
And now he has just one day of rest before Game 4 to stave off a humiliating sweep at home in front of his loyal fans.