(AP Photo/Tony Dejak) For the past four years, the NBA landscape has been dominated by the two teams. Here are the 5 teams that LeBron James routinely tormented in his career: Miami Heat v New York Knicks. James has as many series losses in the Finals as Michael Jordan , Kobe Bryant and Larry Bird Coached by Steve Kerr, the team went 67-15 and cruised to a Finals match-up against LeBron James, looking to win a championship in Cleveland. The 2017 postseason marks the 10th anniversary of LeBron James first run to The NBA Finals, when his play powered the Cleveland Cavaliers to their first championship series. Heres how LeBrons teams elimination games have ended (wins in italics) 2006, Pistons beat Cavs in Game 7, Conference semis 2007, Spurs beat Cavs in Game 7, Finals LeBron, will be the first. Fans give their opinions on whether Stephen Curry has had to carry the Warriors the way LeBron James carried his teams. It NBA Finals teams and James has as many series losses in the Finals as Michael Jordan , Kobe Bryant and Larry Bird combined. Written By. Rookie LeBron James helped the Cavs improve by 18 games. This is the detail of NBA games in which Kobe Bryant and LeBron James played against each other, including head-to-head record, stats average, game highs and game-by-game data both in the Regular Season and Playoffs. Racers aim to be a cut above the rest at annual lawnmower He convienently uses "finals teams beaten" and not played, also doesn't include the players teams SRS Bulls avg SRS: 9.10 Avg finals opp: 6.84 Lebrons tm average SRS: 4.63 Avg finals opponent SRS: 7.39 Between 2008 and 2010, the NBA saw a new side of LeBron James. The teams that LeBron James has played on have a 2-4 record in the NBA Finals. James has as many series losses in the Finals as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Larry Bird combined. This is my ranking of LeBron James' Finals opponents. This post was edited on 6/26 at 2:23 pm. 3-2 for bron. Many believe this years Golden State Warriors squad will be the ultimate test of LeBron James illustrious career. A closer look into the playoff opponents of MJ Explanation: The first Both LeBron James and Kevin Durant faced immense criticism and backlash when they joined the Miami Heat (2010) and Golden State Warriors (2016). They faced off against each other in four straight NBA Finals. In the first Celtics vs. LeBron series, Boston was in its debut season with the new Big Three.. How is facing the #1 defense a cakewalk? In his first series with Miami, he averaged 17.8 PPG, 7.2 RPG, and 6.8 APG. DRtg measures points allowed per 100 possessions and is the absolute bottom line stat for measuring He shares stories and insights from his 20 seasons in the league, where he faced players like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and more. Playoffs: n/a. The Los Angeles Lakers are going to the conference finals for the first time in a decade, ending the longest drought in franchise history. The UConn women's basketball team fought all the way to its The 2011 Miami Heat may have fallen apart against the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals, but this was easily the best team LeBron James has been a part of. LeBron James is back in the NBA Finals and his Los Angeles Lakers are big favorites to win the series against the Miami Heat, LeBrons former team. Also "mvps beaten", once again hangs his argument on the fact that MJ had over powered teams and won every finals series MVPs played in the finals: Lebron: 9* Jordan: 3 *12 if you count players who ever won an MVP (kD, russ, and harden had not won an MVP yet in 2012) Advertisement: 2008 Eastern Conference Semifinals: Celtics over Cavaliers, 4-3. 1992 Blazers (Jordan) LINK. 2016-2017 GSW loss 13. 1996 Sonics (Jordan) 10. September 28, 2020 1:30 pm ET. LeBron isnt the only LeBrons 3-6 finals record is not very good, only winning one-in-three of his trips made to the NBA Finals. But Michael Jordan is considered the GOAT for a reason. 1991 Lakers (Jordan) 3. LeBron finished the campaign with averages of 34.0 points per game, 9.1 rebounds, 9.0 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 53.9 percent shooting from the field. and never faced the Lakers in the playoffs. Net rating: -2.9. Devika Pawar. This team felt like it was the beginning of the new era of three-point shooting basketball. Playoff Head-To-Head: LeBron James vs. Kevin Durant 5-9. Number of All-Stars: 0. 6. LeBron James is back in the NBA Finals and his Los Angeles Lakers are big favorites to win the series against the Miami Heat, LeBrons former team. It was also with the Miami Heat that LeBron James was last a favorite in the NBA Finals, all the way back in 2013. What the younger generation may not know or remember, is exactly who Michael Jordan faced in the Finals. Kevin Kobe: Lakers would beat in the Magic in 5 games, winning their first post-Shaq NBA title (ironically against Shaqs first team). After 7 seasons with the Cavaliers, Lebron became the NBAs public enemy #1 with The Decision to join Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and the Miami Heat. No Finals MVP has ever faced the team that he won the award with in the past. The Cavs advanced to the Finals for the second straight year and LeBrons sixth straight time. One season removed from Miamis collective choke against the Mavericks, LeBrons legacy looked to The Face of The NBA. Getty Images. Despite the Cavalier roster being completely decimated, LeBron James otherworldly play still turned the Finals into a series worth watching before losing in six games to the Golden State LeBron Raymone James Twitter: KingJames Instagram: kingjames (King James, LBJ, Chosen One, Bron-Bron, The Little Emperor, The Akron The 2022 NBA Finals will begin on Thursday night, and while Steph Curry and the Warriors enter the series as favorites to win a fourth championship in the last eight years, the Boston Celtics should pose the toughest test Golden State has faced this postseason.. The average wins of LeBron's finals opponents is 59.3 wins (and LeBron went 4-6) And that's just the NBA finals. LeBrons worst Finals game came in the biggest Finals game. 2021 NBA Playoffs, 2020 NBA Playoffs, 2019 NBA Playoffs, 2018 NBA Playoffs, 2017 NBA Playoffs, Playoffs Series History All-Star Games. LeBron was the only person who stood in their way. Bron: 01. The basketball world found its new villain in Draymond Green. The Cavaliers faced the best team in NBA history according to regular season record. This is the detail of NBA games in which Stephen Curry and LeBron James played against each other, including head-to-head record, stats average, game highs and game-by-game data both in the Regular Season and Playoffs. The team that beat MJ made the Finals 5/6 times and also won the Finals 3/6 times. LeBron thought hed face 2012 Finals Thunder team for a while | OKC Thunder Wire Two of these seasons featured a team not even in California (arent sports the best/worst? The Warner Brothas are backing discussing The NBA Finals, giving their predictions on who is going to win the series, can Steph surpass LeBron, who is more annoying than Bronsexuals and more! Durant and LeBron have only met in the playoffs through the NBA Finals. 2022 World Cup. Some players that barely made this list are Manu Ginobili who played for the Spurs against James on three NBA Finals editions and Russell Westbrook, who played for the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2012 NBA Finals. 10. Draymond Green If playback doesn't begin shortly, try restarting your device. Lebron: In 2009, the Cavs His teams should have been doing what Golden St accomplished organically. HOF status: Inducted in 2021 One of the toughest rivals of LeBron James was Tim Duncan. You are here: BBR Home Page > Playoffs. The game will feature Team LeBron vs. If you line up all 18 of their Conference Finals opponents, four of the top five were foes of Jordan's Bulls while seven of the bottom eight teams were ones that faced off against LeBron's Cavs Team Durant. 8 seed. Lebron faced 6 opponents in the finals better than the best Jordan faced. Basketball, NBA. Jordan faced countless 50+ and 60+ win teams in the preliminary rounds in addition to the finals One is 3-6 in the Finals. The 73-9 During LeBron James second tour of duty with the Cleveland LeBron is making his eighth Finals appearance. Download App. Ranking the top 5 teams that LeBron James has faced in the NBA Finals LeBron James NBA Finals Foes. Tony Parker was named NBA Finals MVP, making him the first Spur other than Tim Draymond Green has faced LeBron James in the Finals in the last four years. After facing off against the Thunder in the 2012 NBA Finals, LeBron James thought he'd have to play against that roster for plenty of years to come. Heres a look at the times LeBron has met the Celtics in the playoffs prior to this years Eastern Conference finals, which are currently underway. LeBron James is going there for the first time since 2018. In his first appearance LeBron's teams faced the #1 defense 5 years in a row. Miami eliminated the Boston Celtics (4-2), while James and the Los Angeles Lakers won the series against the Denver Nuggets (4-1). They faced each other a total of 22 times in NBA games. 2015-2016 GSW - won vs LeBrons first Finals with the Heat was easily the worst of his career. The issue was chemistry, LeBron James and his Cleveland Cavaliers suffered another defeat in the NBA Finals this week, losing to the Golden State Warriors for the third time the past four seasons. LeBron fans like to forget about the 1st round, semi's and finals since LeBron never really faced any strong teams in those rounds. James and Green are just the third and fourth players in NBA history to win a One faced a far easier road to get there. As a reminder, the LeBron teams that have made the Finals are as follows: the 2007 Cavs, 2011 Heat, 2012 Heat, 2013 Heat, 2014 Heat, 2015 Cavs, 2016 Cavs, 2017 Cavs, and 2018 Cavs. 5. Record: 35-47, 9th seed in East. His team faced the best Spurs team of the 00s with Duncan and 2 Lebron faced better teams in the finals like the Spurs big 3 Duncan,Tony Parker also Manu including Kawhi Leonard. 2007 - LeBron carried an overachieving Cavs team to the Finals at the age of 22 without any HOF/blue chip teammates on his squad. One faced a far more daunting task once there. Carlos Osorio/AP. Kendrick Perkins and the Celtics won the title in 2008, but their road to the Finals wasnt easy at all, as they faced LeBron James and the Cavs. Heres how Id rank the 10 opponents Jordan and LeBron have faced in the Finals: 1. curry>gp, magic>kd, duncan>barkley, malone>dirk and kawhi>Drexler. During LeBron's 8 straight finals runs he faced the #1 Defense 6 times. Jordan averaged 41 points per Jordan faced magic shaq. 2014-2015 GSW - loss 19. 2009 Lakers beat Magic to win Kobes 4th NBA title. The Cavaliers finished the season with a 35-47 record, coming up one game shy of the Boston Celtics for the No. However, he has also had some of the worst luck in history. In case you missed it, heres a look at the two squads: faced off in the Rising Stars event. LeBron James has faced some legendary teams in the NBA Finals. One is 6-0 in the Finals. 17.8 points per game, 7.2 rebounds per game, 6.8 assists per game. LeBrons simple fact of having taken this team to the NBA final is a great feat, as in each of the series they played they faced better teams, but with great performances they managed to win Back to top. The teams that LeBron James has played on have a 2-4 record in the NBA Finals. The Five Best Teams LeBron Defeated While Ruling the East. LeBron has 1993 Suns (Jordan) 9. But the clarity of James personal 2013-2014 SPURS loss 14. He talks about playing for the Knicks and the Clippers, including LAs failure to make it to the NBA Finals. The Cavs advanced to the Finals for the second straight year and LeBrons sixth straight time. Atlanta Hawks. This is a side by side comparison of the All-Stars that Michael Jordan has faced (Getty Images) After a surprising lead of 2-1 games after 3, everyone knew Game 4 was the tipping point in the NBA Finals. Raheem Palmer looks at each of Heres a look at the six times LeBron led a team to the Finals after having a losing record during the season. Lebron does not go to 8 straight Finals if his teams are playing in the Western Conference. Odds The weight that was on LeBron's shoulders in that Finals was crushing, and his performance under that weight was legendary: 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, 8.9 assists, 2.6 steals and Since 2011, either LeBron or Curry has been in every NBA Finals except for 2020. The average team LeBron faced in his 45 (and counting) series posted a regular-season net rating of +3.97, which roughly equates to a 52-win team. The 73-9 Warriors were on a mission to become the undisputed greatest team ever. Read More. 1946-47, 1947-48, 1955-56. Shooting 47.8% overall and a disappointing 32.1% from the 3 point line. However, superstars rarely find themselves in that position. The flip side is that Jamess NBA Finals opponents were much tougher than Jordans. MJ never faced a finals foe as dominant as the 2015, 2016 and 2017 Warriors and only once bested a team better than the Spurs that swept Jamess upstart Cavaliers in 2007. 2017-2018 GSW - loss 25. Lets get this out of the way real quick. LeBron James will face his former team, the Miami Heat, in the 2020 NBA Finals. Full Site Menu. He faced the Thunder who were actually good with 3 MVPS even beat the 2011 Mavericks (LeBron) 4. They faced each other a total of 42 times in NBA games. If you line up all 18 of their Conference Finals opponents, four of the top five were foes of Jordan's Bulls while seven of the bottom eight teams were ones that faced off against LeBron's Cavs The Warriors and Celtics split the two-game regular-season series with each team winning on the LeBron James' record in the NBA Finals often overshadows his ability to consistently make it to the championship round year after year. 2011-12 Boston Celtics. Phoenixs Finals squad was a true offensive juggernaut, and one well suited for the modern era. 2012 Thunder (LeBron) 8. The King faced The Big Fundamental in three NBA Finals: 2007, 2013, and 2014. And I know Jordan faced better conference competition, but when you are talking about a Goat tier player its going to take a great team to beat them. The 2007 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 200607 season.The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs defeating the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers 4 games to 0 in the NBA Finals. LeBron James Playoffs Game Log. Playoffs. I collected some quick data on their opponents' team DRtg in the playoffs. LeBron James 4-6 record in the NBA Finals has to be looked at in the The 2011 Bulls are only elite team that Lebron ever faced in the Eastern Conference Finals during that run from 2011-2018. This would also make seven trips to the Finals in a row for LeBron, and the eighth Finals appearance of his career. lebron easily but jordan is the goat. The teams that LeBron James has played on have a 2-4 record in the NBA Finals. 2007 Spurs (LeBron) 2. Also "mvps beaten", once again hangs his argument on the fact that MJ had over powered teams and won every finals series MVPs played in the finals: Lebron: 9* Jordan: 3 *12 if you count players who ever won an MVP (kD, russ, and harden had not won an MVP yet in LeBron led the Cavs to the NBA Finals in 2007, but he struggled to score and the team was swept by the San Antonio Spurs. Jordan stans love to cherry pick stats and not use context. LeBron Raymone James Twitter: KingJames Instagram: kingjames (King James, LBJ, Chosen One, Bron-Bron, The Little Emperor, The Akron Hammer, L-Train) Position: Small Forward, Power Forward, Point Guard, and Shooting Guard Shoots: Right 6-9, 250lb (206cm, 113kg) . While talking to Taylor Rooks, JJ Redick claimed that the backlash after LeBron James and Kevin Durant's decisions came because of racism in the NBA. 2013 Spurs (LeBron) 7. LeBron James Playoffs Game Log. Even though the Heat were seen as I think the Jazz from 97' and 98' were better than the 11' Mavs. The Cavaliers faced the best team in NBA history according to regular season record. LeBron James and Danny Green created history as the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Miami Heat in the 2020 NBA Finals. Born: December 30, 1984 in Akron, Ohio us 1997 Jazz (Jordan) 5.