Let’s see a show of hands for anyone who fell victim to LeBron James’ okey-doke…
The two-time MVP showed no signs of injury as he manhandled the Celtics on his way to 38 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists, while leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 124-95 victory at the TD Garden in Boston.
Over the past few days, LeBron was the focus of the media. After showing some discomfort in his right elbow in the final moments of the closing game against Chicago, there was much speculation as to the extent of any injury that James may have sustained.
Tonight, James and his Cavaliers got off to a quick start against the home team. Behind 21 first-quarter points from LeBron, Cleveland outscored Boston 36-17. But they didn’t rest after their run, and kept the pressure on. Cleveland went into the halftime break with a 22-point lead, and extended it to 26 after three quarters.
On Friday night, James didn't give us any reason to think he had an elbow injury.
The Cavs played better in just about all aspects of this game. They outshot the Celtics (from the free throw line, from three-point land and overall), outrebounded them (45 to 30) and outpassed them (25 assists to 20). Cleveland had six players in double figures , and almost every player that took the court for them got in the scoring column (Jamario Moon was the only player shut out). By contrast, Boston failed to get efficient play from two of its primary offensive weapons – Ray Allen and Paul Pierce. The duo combined to shoot just 6-24 from the floor, combining for only 18 points.
Now that they are trailing the Cavs two games to one, things will continue to get tougher for the Celtics with Game 4 of the series on Sunday in Boston. The veteran Celtics figured to benefit from a long layoff between games, with Game 2 taking place on Monday. Boston will be battling the effects of aging legs on Sunday, but must find a way to pull out a win if they want to stay in the series.
Cleveland now has the luxury of playing loose, aggressive basketball against Boston - who will be saddled with all of the pressure on Sunday. A quick turnaround may be best for the Cavs, as they’ll look to keep the momentum on their side.
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T Lamont is an administator and author covering all sports for Ball or Nuthin'. Send T Lamont a question or comment for future discussion (tlamont@ballornuthin.com). 
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