Hopefully you all enjoyed a great weekend, and especially you dads out there. Cheers to you. And if you’re a dad that also happens to be a Cavs fan? That must’ve been one hell of a Sunday…
The Cavaliers are your 2015-2016 NBA champions, ending 52-year title drought in Cleveland
I’m one of the many people that owes the Cleveland Cavaliers an apology for more or less writing them off when they were down 3-1 in this series. Beating this 73-win Golden State Warriors team three times in a row? With two of those games being at Oracle Arena? I just didn’t see it happening.
But the Cavs have LeBron James, and LeBron can be an unstoppable force unlike anything we’ve ever seen in the NBA before. He can completely take over a series, against anyone, and that’s what happened here. LeBron capped it off with a tremendous Game 7 performance, as our own Harry Lyles Jr. writes:
Well, there could not have been a bigger challenge for LeBron to overcome than the one he just did, and he passed the test with flying colors. LeBron finished the series with a triple-double in Game 7, with 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists. He’s just the third player in NBA Finals history to have a triple-double in a Game 7, joining the great Jerry West and James Worthy. That’s damn good company to be in, and it will undoubtedly be considered one of the greatest NBA Finals performances of all-time. It was absolutely masterful. Any narratives surrounding LeBron are gone. Anybody who continues to try and make him out to be something he’s not, or diminish what he has accomplished in his NBA career, is nothing but an unreasonable detractor, and likely not a true fan of the game of basketball. LeBron is a unique player, whose story is still being written. Sunday was just the latest chapter.
While LeBron’s offensive numbers were incredible in the series, the play he will be most remembered for was this chase-down block in the final two minutes of Game 7:
LEBLOCK pic.twitter.com/qi8cGK4PLg — Joon Lee (@iamjoonlee) June 20, 2016
The play really summarized the final five minutes of Game 7, as the Warriors didn’t score in the final 4:40 of the game! And in a tied game with 53 seconds left, Kyrie Irving hit this three-ball that would serve as the game-winning shot for the Cavs:
The final seconds:
Full highlights:
And Scott Van Pelt tossing some shade Skip Bayless’ way:
And SVP was definitely not alone in ESPN colleagues roasting Bayless.
More stories from the game:
– Richard Jefferson announced his retirement. Talk about going out on top.
– An emotional J.R. Smith talked about his parents’ influence on him.
– President Obama waited to exit Air Force One… so he could see the end of Game 7.
– Nike honors Cavs with an awesome ad.
– And… someone is selling “Bye, Ayesha” Cavs shirts.
Dustin Johnson wins the 2016 U.S. Open
Dustin Johnson took home his first major title with a U.S. Open victory on Sunday at Oakmont. I’m not going to pretend I know much more than that, other than this second shot Johnson had on the 18th which I caught after being out and about with my dad for most of Father’s Day:
There was apparently a controversy that drove many golfers mad (and defending DJ), like Rory McIlroy:
Now, I know someone that did follow this closely, and they have a full-on reaction (including much on the aforementioned controversy) that will be up on this site today! That would be fellow Cheat Sheeter Jay Rigdon. Check the front page for Jay’s US Open recap today.
Quick Hits
– The Tampa Bay Rays’ Pride Night on Friday ended up being a night dedicated to the Orlando shooting victims. It ended up being the most-attended Rays game in over a decade, and they raised roughly $300,000 to benefit the victims. Terrific stuff, Rays.
– Chile beat Mexico 7-0 in the Copa America lol.
Meanwhile, the USA will take on Argentina on Tuesday. SI’s Grant Wahl takes a look at the matchup.
– Good news to you DFS players: New York votes to legalize DFS.
– Nick Young and Izzy Azalea broke up.
– Jordan Spieth rocked the Steph Curry Under Armour shoes at the U.S. Open.
– The White Sox have to be regretting that James Shields trade.
– Young boy adorably gives ball to young girl at Marlins game.
– Denny’s had, um, an interesting tweet.
– Krispy Kreme is now selling watermelon donuts.
– A Colorado woman saved her son from a mountain lion.
One last breath of gratuitous procrastination
The reaction of his opponent may even be better than the shot. “I’m not even mad. That’s amazing.”