May 6 (UPI) -- LeBron James drilled a fade-away buzzer-beater to win Game 3 of the Cleveland Cavaliers' conference semifinals matchup against the Toronto Raptors.
"Tie game, down one, or whatever the case may be, I live for those moments," James told reporters.
The Cavaliers and Raptors were tied at 103-103 with eight seconds remaining when Kevin Love inbounded the ball under the Cavaliers' net. He tossed a pass into James.
The four-time NBA MVP weaved down the court, before deciding the sprint down the left flank. James drew defender O.G. Anunoby. He took a few steps inside the 3-point line before throwing up a floater. The shot bounced off of the glass and went through the net as the final horn sounded.
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UNREAL. pic.twitter.com/BPDbdhBHA1
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) May 6, 2018
"I had more than enough time to get the ball from one baseline to the other," James said. "That's way more time than I needed. They did a good job of putting a little pressure on us in the back court, putting two on me at first and then I was able to get open."
"When do I decide which shot I'm going to take? To be honest, sometimes I really don't know but I trust every shot I'm going to take because I work on every shot. So sometimes it could be a pull up three, as you saw in the Indiana series. It could be a drive for a layup that I've had in the past. It could be a floater, like it was tonight off the glass. I practice pretty much every shot that I take in a game. No matter if its the first quarter or the game-winner, I feel pretty comfortable with it."
Unreal. 👑 #WhateverItTakes pic.twitter.com/zsxDkSCj16
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) May 6, 2018
James scored a game-high 38 points and had seven assists and six rebounds in the win. Kevin Love had 21 points and 16 rebounds. Kyle Lowry led the Raptors with 27 points and seven assists.
He has been practicing game winners since he was about six years old. @KingJames shares that he has been fortunate to have a handful of those opportunities in his career. #WhateverItTakes pic.twitter.com/9BU0SkfMSD
— FOX Sports Ohio (@FOXSportsOH) May 6, 2018Advertisement