Kevin Durant Has Dominated an Exhausted Lebron James in the 4th Quarter of the NBA Finals

Remember in Oklahoma City when Kevin Durant was Mr. Unreliable? Well he just scored 14 points in the 4th quarter of Game 3, outplaying LeBron James when it mattered most, and the Warriors stunned the Cavs 118-113 to take a 3-0 series lead. They can go for the sweep Friday night.

I’ve got to be honest – even though I called a sweep, it felt like the Cavs had this game. JR Smith made a 3-pointer with 3:07 left and the Cavs took a 6-point lead. Then Durant missed an open 3-pointer. And it felt over. It really did.

And then, magically … the tired Cavs kept running iso with Kyrie or LeBron, nothing resembling offense. And Durant took over. I re-watch the end, and here’s the chart after Durant’s miss with just under three minutes left:

JR Smith missed 3-pointer
Kevin Love missed layup
Stephen Curry layup (113-109)
Kyrie Irving missed layup (gets own offensive rebound)
LeBron missed fadeaway
Kevin Durant baseline floater (113-111, 1:15 left)
Kyle Korver missed 3-pointer (:52)
Kevin Durant 3-pointer (over LeBron James, :45)

Kyrie Irving step-back 3-pointer miss
Kevin Durant 2 FTs (116-113, :12)
LeBron turnover
Stephen Curry FTs (118-113)

Ballgame.

Here are the final numbers over the final 2:45
Golden State: 11 points, 3-for-3 FG, 4-for-4 FT
Cleveland: 0 points, 0-for-8 FG

Kevin Durant’s finishing kick is exactly why they got him. Last year, tight game, 4th quarter, Game 7 … and a hobbled Stephen Curry couldn’t get loose, and they missed shot after shot late. Durant has now outscored LeBron 31-11 in the 4th quarter through three games.