Hey Thanks Bron-Bron

"Thank you LeBron. For so many reasons." 

Sounds like a tweet from a desperate Miami fan, doesn't it? Maybe from one whom feels as if he is in debt to LeBron for his historic performance against the Celtics Thursday night. Maybe from one who was brought joy and hope by the Heat's blowout win. Maybe from one who thought that all hope was lost for his beloved Heat. Maybe from one who was sad that the Big 3, who had given him some of his brightest and happiest moments of his sporting memory, would be broken up if not for LeBron's performance tonight. Well we'd be wrong. That tweet came from ESPN's J.A. Adande, a die-hard Lakers fan, who was more than likely just happy with the fact that LeBron James provided the basketball world with a performance that we'd remember forever, as well as providing us with the opportunity to see the single greatest spectacle in all of sports, a Game 7.

There are plenty of reasons why Adande should be thankful for LeBron James. Maybe he is because LeBron's 45 points, 15 rebounds, and 5 assists had only been done one other time in NBA history, by the legendary Wilt Chamberlain. Maybe he is because he did something tonight that Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, and Michael Jordan never did during their careers. Maybe he is because tonight's performance reminded us of just how gifted James is, and how truly lucky we are to get to watch him. Maybe he is because we got to see LeBron outscore, out-rebound, and dish out more assists than the Celtics' Big 3 combined. Maybe he is because in a game the Heat won by 19, his performance was so great that we didn't realize the Heat only had five possessions of transition offense. Maybe he is because the maturity James played with tonight made us forget about the fact that he's grown up in the spotlight since age 16 with no father, brothers, or sisters to lean on. Maybe he is because Dwyane Wade said he'd never seen LeBron locked in like that before, which maybe give us a hint that LeBron has an even higher ceiling than we originally thought. Maybe Adande is thankful just because he's a sportswriter and wants the best story possible. Well, I would bet against that last one. What we saw from LeBron James is something we should cherish as true basketball fans. The sad thing is, is that if James comes out in Game 7, has an average game and the Heat lose, this performance will fade away quickly from the public's mind. Even if James plays great Saturday night but the Heat lose, his performance may still be forgotten. LeBron James had to have an MVP-type performance tonight, a performance that overshadowed Kevin Durant's from the night before, a performance that had to assure everyone that he is the best player on Earth, and he sure did.

I'm continuing to stick by my earlier prediction of Miami in 7 which would match the Heat up against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the NBA Finals match-up that all of America wants, aside from San Antonio and Boston fans. The Thunder's victory Wednesday night robbed us of the "Last Stand" Finals between San Antonio and Boston but maybe we were destined to have the "First Stand" Finals between Oklahoma City and Miami instead.