Wade: Overcoming 3-1 deficit in Finals will define LeBron's legacy
No team had ever rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the NBA Finals to ultimately capture the championship, and against the winningest regular-season team in league history; the Cleveland Cavaliers were basically left for dead against the almighty Golden State Warriors.
From that moment on, and with their backs very much against the wall, LeBron James hoisted the Cavaliers on his shoulders and dissected the Bay Area bomb squad in Games 5 and 6 before closing out the series on the road to bring the city its first championship since 1964.
Chicago Bulls guard Dwyane Wade is James' close friend, as well as a former teammate with the Miami Heat. He knows just as well as anyone how great the King is, but even he was taken back by Cleveland's comeback and the role James played in making it a reality.
"That was special," Wade said on Wednesday prior to the Cavs-Bulls game at the Quicken Loans Arena, according to ESPN's Nick Friedell. "That was incredible. We've seen a lot, we haven't seen, obviously, teams come back from (being down) 3-1 in playoffs that much but especially in the Finals. And not having home-court advantage, that was really special what those guys were able to do, obviously led by Bron.
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"I think for his career, that moment right there really put him where he probably wanted to be. Where everybody thought he was going to be one day when he was deemed as 'The Chosen One.' It was a defining moment for his career forever. So it was special."
Wade and James were both top-five picks in the 2003 NBA Draft, and have developed a well-documented kinship ever since, one that includes winning two championships together with the Heat in 2012 and 2013.
"It just evolved 14 years ago as rookies and (we) just developed a brotherhood," Wade added. "But when it comes to sacrificing, you sacrifice for the greater good of the reason we play a team sport. Once you're young and you get all the recognition and you get paid - you want to win championships.
"And I think I sacrificed to win championships. I don't look at that as a sacrifice when it comes to minutes, numbers. publicity, all that, it doesn't matter. At the end of the day, the goal was to win championships, and we were able to win two together and play in four (Finals). That's what you play the game for, and I'm happy about that."