With just eight seconds on the clock and the shock of watching Toronto Raptors rookie OG Anunoby having improbably tied Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semis with a three-pointer, Cleveland Cavs coach Tyronn Lue called his final timeout.
His play call? A set play called “3 Open,” which called for James to start at the Cavs end of the court and cleave through the Raptors defense to find his shot — and another chapter in his legend.
ESPN commemorated the feat with an oral history, breaking down how the miracle play actually unfolded exactly according to the Cavs’s full script:
“T. Lue was the one who told us, ‘Let’s take it full court,’ knowing I had more than enough time to get the ball up the court, and by us doing that it doesn’t allow the defense to kind of sit and see what you’re going to do,” James explained.
Said Raptors guard C.J. Miles: “The reason they took it out from full court was so we can’t [double-team]. If you run at him 40 feet from the basket, he can see the whole floor and somebody is getting an open shot.”
“He split the trap and went 100 miles an hour down the floor and lost them. We just didn’t execute,” said Raptors coach Dwayne Casey.
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