King's court? Not quite

By the time the pivotal Game 5 was over, it was obvious that the weekend was not going to be smooth for LeBron James and the Miami Heat. Up by four late in the fourth quarter, Miami had yet another breakdown at crunch time, something that has already been the trend in this series.

After Dwyane Wade nailed a three-pointer to put the Heat ahead, 99-95, Dallas went on a decisive 17-4 run, which turned out to be the knockout punch in the said game.

So, what went wrong in that game? Blame it on Dwyane Wade’s injuries, Heat coach Eric Spoelstra’s bad decisions or Miami’s failure to actually close out on Dallas’ shooters during the final minutes, but maybe it is finally time to call out LeBron James with regard to this loss.

Statistics-wise, James had a solid night in Game 5. He actually had a triple-double, putting up 17 points, grabbing 10 boards and dishing out 10 dimes. If we would look at those numbers alone, it was really a solid game for King James. So what are we blabbering about here?

Ladies and gentlemen: If the fourth quarter is an actual living creature, he would have dropped LeBron James a text and he said, “LeBron, please show up,” and that is the problem that Miami needs to resolve right now.

Sure, Dallas is a tough team to crack. They have lots of shooters who can easily heat up and help their team’s cause, and they have a determined leader in Dirk Nowitzki, who has been eager (and successful if I may add) in proving his critics wrong. But that problem is a given. That problem was already presented even way before this series has started, and that problem was already expected by Spoelstra and his team the moment they knew they would be facing the Mavs in the finals.

This one, however, is totally unexpected. When you’re being hailed as a messiah by an entire city and you’ve promised multiple championships to the city that you’re playing for, you better start playing like you deserve all those accolades. James, in this finals series, has failed to back up all those things. In one interview, he addressed questions about his poor performance, saying he didn’t want to interfere with Wade who’s been having a great finals series so far? That is actually a valid point.

But in Game 5, there is no room for that excuse. Wade hobbled in and out of the locker room, while still being productive (23 points on 12 shots, 8 assists). But it was clear that Wade wasn’t the dominant player that he was during the first four games of the playoffs. Finally, the spotlight’s on LeBron.

What happened then?

It was a whole lot of stat-padding and a no-show in the final canto for the King.

Paging LeBron James! (AP Photo)

Two points. Two in the final quarter of the game which the 6’8 forward heralded as “the biggest of his life.” Two points in the final quarter of the game in which their best offensive player of the finals was playing with a hip injury. Two points in a game where he’d been guarded by a 6’4 guard 12 years older than him.

Unacceptable.

While there is still time for LeBron to end this series on a high note, winning the championship wouldn’t even separate him from the atrocity of his play in the first five games of the series.

Paging LeBron James, the fourth quarter is looking for you. (CJ)