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LeBron James pulled a Draymond Green on final shot against Golden State Warriors

By Alex Butler
Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (R) and Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala (L) in action in the first half of Game 3 of the NBA Finals Wednesday at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. Photo by David Maxwell/EPA
Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (R) and Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala (L) in action in the first half of Game 3 of the NBA Finals Wednesday at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. Photo by David Maxwell/EPA

June 8 (UPI) -- Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green has been relatively quiet with the referees during the NBA Finals, but LeBron James pulled off a Green-like kick on the final shot of Game 3.

The Cleveland Cavaliers superstar took a pass near the baseline on the final possession. He turned around to attempt a game-tying 3-pointer. Warriors forward Andrew Iguodala stripped James of the ball, leading his team to a dramatic victory.

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But on James' follow-through, he kicked his right leg forward, between Iguodala's legs.

Social media didn't miss the leg swing, as users posted several videos and screenshots of the contract.

Iguodala scored seven points and had five rebounds and five assists in the 118-113 victory. The Warriors veteran was the 2015 NBA Finals MVP. He averaged 16.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, and four assists per game that series. Iguodala posted 9.1 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game in last year's NBA Finals.

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"Iggy" has averaged 6.3 points, four rebounds and 3.7 assists in the first three games this year.

Green was notoriously suspended for Game 5 of the NBA Finals last season. He was penalized with the ban and given a flagrant foul in the final minutes of Game 4 after swinging his arm toward James' groin area last year. Before that game, Green had gained a reputation for swinging his limbs haphazardly. He was given a flagrant 2 and fined $25,000 by the NBA for kicking Oklahoma City Thunder center Steven Adams between the legs in the 2016 Western Conference Finals.

James could still receive a flagrant foul or a suspension, depending on a possible NBA decision. Iguodala and James were not asked about the altercation in postgame interviews, according to Cleveland.com.

Marreese Speights, who played for the Warriors from 2013 through 2015, criticized James for the move.

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"LeBron kicks Iguodala in the nuts...lol if this was somebody on the Warriors...," he tweeted.

"King James" has looked exhausted several times during this year's finals. Green said the Warriors noticed his fatigue in Game 3.

"I caught LeBron walking off at the end of the third quarter, and you could just tell he was exhausted," Green said in his postgame comments on the NBA TV set.

James finally admitted how taxed he was after Wednesday's loss, after shaking off questions regarding his fatigue earlier in the week.

"I'm drained right now, both mentally and physically," James told The Vertical.

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