There will be no Lebron James vs Kobe Bryant NBA Finals showdown this year. No “The King” vs “The Black Mamba”. No face-off between the reigning MVP and last year’s MVP. No box-office extravaganza for the NBA executives. And finally, we will be seeing no more of those annoying Nike puppet commercials.

Superman Dwight Howard made sure of that. He delivered with 40 points and 14 rebounds as the Orlando Magic won Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers 103-90.

After the game, Lebron James immediately left the arena heads down and shoulders slumped straight to the locker room as confetti rained down on the celebrating Dwight Howard and his teammates. He did not even bother attending the post-game conference. He was simply wrecked. Poor Lebron.

Despite giving his all by averaging an amazing 38.5 points, 8.3 rebounds and 8.0 assists in the series, it was still not enough. Lebron might be gifted with pure athletic ability but basketball is a team sport and one man alone can’t do it all by himself. Although he plays 1-on-5 type of basketball against opposing teams, he just can’t do it on a nightly basis. In short, he needs help big-time.

The Cleveland Cavaliers ran-away with an NBA best 66-16 win-loss record during the regular season as they steamrolled over opponents. But during the NBA playoffs where the stakes are higher, their weakness was exposed particularly against the Orlando Magic. Their frontcourt of Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Anderson Varejao and Ben Wallace can’t contain Dwight Howard. Nobody can’t stop the raining of three point bombs being thrown from all angles by Rashard Lewis, Hedo Torkuglo, Rafer Alston and Michael Pietrus. And on top of that, Lebron James’ supporting cast provided everything except, well, support.

By failing to advance to the NBA Finals and bring home the crown, Lebron James’ “legendary” shot at the end of Game 2 has now been relegated to just a “great” shot. His spectacular 37 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists triple-double performance in Game 5 is now just that, a spectacular stat line. They became insignificant to the unfolding drama of the NBA playoffs and were reduced to footnotes to Lebron’s still young legacy.

I feel great pity for Lebron James. Nobody can criticize him for lack of effort or leadership. In the end, a bunch of “Jokers” was the one who failed their “King”.

Please read my related posts:

1. 2009 NBA Playoffs | Lebron James Hits the Game-Winning Buzzer Beater After Hedo Torkuglo of the Orlando Magic hit a leaning jumper with 1 second left in the shot-clock to put...
2. Kobe and Lebron Pitted Against Each Other for 2009 ESPY Best Male Athlete and Best NBA Player Awards The Lebron James vs Kobe Bryant dream matchup might have failed to realize in this year’s NBA Finals but who...
3. Lebron James is 2009 ESPYs Best NBA Player Awardee After bagging his 1st NBA MVP Award this season, Lebron James rightfully added the prestigious 2009 ESPY Awards Best NBA...
4. Lebron James Named as 2009 NBA MVP for the First Time It was supposed to be a close Most Valuable Player race between last season’s MVP, Kobe Bryant and Lebron James....
5. 2009 NBA Playoffs | Dwight Howard Brings Down the Shot Clock During the 1st quarter of his team Orlando Magic’s Eastern Conference Finals Game 1 duel with MVP Lebron James and...

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Tags: 2009 NBA playoffs, dwight howard, kobe bryant, lebron james