LeBron James Cuts Off Tense NBA Finals Interview On J.R. Smith
LeBron James’ patience ran into overtime following the Cleveland Cavaliers’ overtime loss to the Golden State Warriors on Thursday in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
Mark Schwarz of ESPN pressed the superstar on what teammate J.R. Smith was thinking when he dribbled out nearly all of the waning seconds of a tied-up game.
The final question of the night from the LeBron James postgame presser:
Did J.R. Smith know the score? #NBAFinals
(via @NBATV) pic.twitter.com/T7uD7DRpeH— The Ringer (@ringer) June 1, 2018
Schwarz asked James if he knew what Smith’s state of mind was at the time or if he knew the score ― several times.
And in several ways, James answered in the negative.
“From where you stood on the court and talking to him after the play, what’s your reaction to it, what’s your version?” Schwarz asked.
“What do you mean, what’s my version?” James responded.
“Well, did he think that the game was tied, or did he think you guys had it salted away?” Schwarz said.
“How do I know that?” James said. It didn’t get better from there.
Earlier in the night, Smith had grabbed a free-throw rebound in the final seconds of regulation time. He could have shot or passed to an open teammate for a decent look, but instead dribbled away from the basket.
CLASSIC JR SMITH LOLOLOLOL pic.twitter.com/V609eAhWql
— gifdsports (@gifdsports) June 1, 2018
James’ reaction to Smith’s misstep became emblematic of Game 1 after the Cavs eventually lost to the Warriors in overtime.
The Cavs let Game 1 slip through their fingers. pic.twitter.com/cwwBaQgzUs
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) June 1, 2018
After Schwarz’s questions, James put down the mike and walked out.
“Be better tomorrow,” he said in the clip below as he left.
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Bron walked out of the press conference and told the media to “be better tomorrow.” 💀
(via @abc7newsbayarea) pic.twitter.com/LmeRSUCYbl— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 1, 2018
For the record, Smith claimed that he knew the score was tied but thought the team would call a timeout. However, his coach, Tyronn Lue, said Smith told him he believed the Cavs were up by 1.
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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.