The NBA gave us everything we wanted on Wednesday night — star power, playoff intensity, and a reminder that LeBron James still has his Hollywood acting chops.
The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Golden State Warriors 103-100 in the 7-8 play-in matchup. Curry had 37 points on 6-9 shooting from three, while James finished with 22 including the game winning three from 34 feet with 58.2 seconds left in the game. It was the longest three of the season for James, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
And while James’ performance secured a playoff berth for the Lakers, it was his theatrics — rather than his gameplay — that stole the show.
James, known throughout the league for his flopping, put forward two Oscar-worthy performances during Wednesday night’s thriller which had social media buzzing.
The first flop came against the Warriors’ Juan Toscano-Anderson early in the fourth quarter. James — attempting to draw a charge on the play — threw himself backwards after minimal contact and was rewarded with an offensive foul. After review, the referee’s determined that the play was not an offensive foul, but a block on James.
While on the bench during the review, James clearly points to his chin indicating that Toscano-Anderson hit him with an elbow to the face. Based on the replay, James’ face was never touched and the reversal of the call confirmed it.
James wasn’t done showing the world that he’s learned a thing or two from his recent Hollywood acting roles.
Late in the fourth quarter, James went up for a layup with the Warriors’ Draymond Green defending. Green — who was fantastic defensively the entire game — committed a hard foul on the play, sending James to the line for two free-throws.
James spent the next few minutes writhing on the ground, acting as if the contact on the play nearly blinded him.
Draymond was called for a common foul on LeBron.
LeBron stayed down after the whistle. pic.twitter.com/8dRol1ovsp
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 20, 2021
After reviewing the call to determine whether Green committed a flagrant foul, it was determined to be a common foul on the floor.
Rightfully, James’ acting job was mocked on social media.
Actor of the year 🤣
— CJ McCollum (@CJMcCollum) May 20, 2021
As James commonly does, he leaned into the supposed eye injury after the game in order to make his game-winning shot appear even more impressive.
“I put in a lot of work in my game,” James said. “After the Draymond finger to the eye, I was literally seeing three rims out there. I just shot at the middle one. And I was able to, with the grace from the man above, I was able to knock it down.”
LeBron on his game-winning shot:
“After Draymond’s finger to the eye, I was literally seeing three rims out there. I just shot for the middle one”
(via @Rachel__Nichols) pic.twitter.com/Di0Je54UWT
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 20, 2021
With the win, the Lakers secured the seventh seed in the Western Conference Playoffs and will play the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.