LeBron drags the Golden State Warriors, beaten in game 6 – Corriere.it

Always in pursuit in a season that began with 2 wins and 10 defeats (with lots of doubts about the new coach, Darvin Ham), always quite far from the orbit of the playoffs, eventually reached by entering the back door, those play-offs called play- in. This was the (recent) past, but now the present explains that the Los Angeles Lakers won the Western Conference Finals, in which they will challenge the Denver Nuggets: they eliminated the defending champions of the Golden State Warriors dominating the sixth race of the series at the Crypto.com Arena (122-101) and closing the accounts at 4-2. In other words: beware of them, they are reborn.

In the end, the blitz in game 1 in San Francisco weighed decisively, a company that took away from the Warriors the advantage of playing any game 7 at home and which probably destabilized them. But in this scenario the contribution of
LeBron James, the big man who at 38 never ceases to amaze
. We’ll talk again, not before saying that the defeat almost certainly marks the end of a cycle for the Golden State that since 2015 has given them 4 titles and 2 other finals and that the restart will have as its fulcrum Stephen Currythe last to surrender against the Lakers, a brilliant that never stops shining.

This highly anticipated duel between two franchises that have inevitably seen the rivalry grow also demonstrates that the fate of a team can also change along the way, even more so if your name is the Lakers and you are the franchise that, together with the Boston Celtics, has hoarded titles in NBA history (17 apiece). In truth, after the success in 2020, the one conquered in the famous bubble of Orlando, unique seat of the playoffs due to the health emergency, no traces of this glory have been seen: 2020-2021, elimination in the first round against Phoenix; 2021-2022, even no playoffs. And this vintage, as mentioned, promised a long storm. To make a breakthrough, it was necessary to turn the team around, first of all giving up a player (Russell Westbrook) perhaps wanted by LeBron himself but once again revealed to be a divine loser. In dismantling/rebuilding LBJ and Anthony Davis were the pillars (also) of the new project. The two had quite a few physical ailments, with relative absences, but the choice to bet again and more than ever on them was spot on, even if in the overturning of the team and of the values ​​signed by the various Russell, Hachimura, Walker weighed the growth of Austin Reaves, the boy who grew up in an Arkansas village of 1000 inhabitants where even today, in the summer, he takes care of the family’s livestock.

Going back to Davis and James, the first, between the comeback in the regular season and the playoffs, has unleashed moments of absolute omnipotence under the scoreboards, while the Chosen One has seen fit to respond to those who suspected that despite his desire to carry on until he can be on the field together or in front of his son Bronny was in decline. So his venerable age allowed himself, in game 6, the following “game”: 30 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists, 10 of 14 shooting, 2 of 3 from three and 8 of 11 free throws in 43 minutes on the field. Only two turnovers from The King, who controlled the timing of his performance, attacking the iron with continuity (just to explain who was in charge) and taking the breath away from the Warriors defense.

For James this won series representsin addition to reaching the twelfth Conference Finals in his career, another record: in fact, the playoff series conquered by the Chosen One is 41, one more than Derek Fisher and two more than Robert Horry, coincidentally two other Lakers legends.

At 38, James once again has the chance to fight for the title and never as in this season had the prospect seemed remote or even impossible. But the transformation of yellow-violet Los Angeles perhaps followed and kissed by the coincidences of fate: who was the team faced and beaten in the 2020 West final? Denver, same opponent coming up now. And looking to the East, where the Miami Heat eliminated the New York Knicks by taking first place in the Conference final (waiting to see if they will be joined by Boston or Philadelphia), one cannot help but remember that the 2020 final was Florida team and the Lakers. Maybe the NBA clock will turn back three years…