Lebron gets smothered in his first NBA Finals game scoring only 14 points and 6 turnovers, as the Spurs beat the Cavs 85-76. Lebron will need to adjust to the Spurs defense, with outside shooting likely to be the key for Game 2.

Lebron James’ First NBA Finals Game had a record-low TV Rating.

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His Airness is paying tribute to the kid called King James.

Michael Jordan praised 22-year-old LeBron James for leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to victory over the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference finals. The Cavaliers advanced to the finals for the first time in their 37-year history.”What just transpired was something I felt was needed for the league, was needed for Cleveland, was needed for LeBron,” Jordan said in Monday editions of the Chicago Tribune.

James dominated Game 5 against Detroit, scoring Cleveland’s final 25 points in the win. The Cavaliers became just the third team to overcome an 0-2 deficit to win the conference finals.

Jordan, who won six NBA championships during his 13 seasons with the Chicago Bulls, said the next challenge for James is to achieve consistency.

“Making ‘The Leap’ is where you do it every single night,” Jordan said. “It’s expected of you, and you do it. … Not one game, not two games. It’s consistent. Every defense comes in and they focus on you and you still impact the game. I think he’s shown signs of that.”

James took a “big step” forward in the series against Detroit, but the NBA finals against the San Antonio Spurs will provide another huge test, Jordan said.

“This next series is going to say, ‘How far do you want to take it?”‘ said Jordan, speaking from Elkhart Lake, Wis., where his motorcycle team was participating in a racing event.

James was thrilled to learn of Jordan’s approval.

“It’s great,” the Cavaliers star said after practice on Monday. “Anytime you get praise from the guy who basically laid down all the stones for you to get here. I grew up idolizing his game and how he played the game of basketball. It was definitely great to hear.”

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The Cavaliers, once the punch line to jokes, are Eastern Conference champions — and on their way to the NBA finals.

The Cleveland Cavaliers finally reach the NBA finals, beating Detroit 98 to 82 in Game 6 of the East Finals. After a incredible performance by Lebron in Game 5, the Pistons clamped down their defense, but Lebron wisely chose to rely on his teammates, most notably, Daniel Gibson who poured 31 career high points, 19 in the 4th quarter to put away the Pistons. Next challenge is San Antonio, a proven Finals team, that will test the young Cavaliers. Stay Tuned!

LeBron James scored 48 points in one of the greatest playoff performances in NBA history, to lead the Cavaliers past Detroit 109-107 in double overtime in Detroit on Thursday.

James amazingly scored Cleveland’s final 25 points in an epic game as the Cavs took a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference final with game six on Saturday in Cleveland.

“This is one of the best individual performances I have ever seen. He was magnificent,” Charles Barkley, retired NBA star and television commentator, said.

More:

• LeBron James is on another level now (USA Today)
• King’s court: LeBron James reigns over Detroit Pistons (Canada.com)
• LeBron James Rises to Occasion in Playoff Win (NPR)
• James works overtime / LeBron scores 29 of Cavs’ final 30 points in win (San Francisco Chronicle)
• King’s court: LeBron James reigns over Detroit Pistons in Game 5 (Slam! Sports)
• Game five news conference: LeBron James (WKYC Cleveland)
• Cleveland’s LeBron James, right, played an aggressive game to take his team to a 3-2 series lead [AFP] (Aljazeera)

James scored 28 points and Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 20, leading the Cavaliers to a 104-92 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday night. Eric Snow finished with 18 points, helping improve Cleveland’s record to 23-13.

“We’ve just got to keep playing like we’ve been playing,” James said. “We can’t let no pressure get to us. We don’t believe in pressure as a team. And me being a leader, I don’t believe in it, so I kind of keep it away from my teammates. We do an excellent job of taking it game by game and not thinking about the future. We try to approach every game like it’s our last.”