The Golden State Warriors are three wins from completing a three-peat and capturing their fourth NBA championship in five years.
But the one that got away still bothers star guard Stephen Curry. With the Warriors down three points to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals, the six-time All-Star hoisted an ill-advised 3-point shot over Kevin Love with 33 seconds left in regulation.
Curry misfired, and it continues to haunt him three years later.
"I'm like, 'I just need a little space' - and that's where I started to rush," Curry said, according to ESPN's Jackie MacMullan. "I look back and think I could have easily gone around (Love) and gotten a two, and we could have gotten a stop, and then I could come back down and hit another shot, and we win another championship, instead of me going for the hero shot, which I felt like I could make.
"That was a shot where I was not under control. And it cost us a championship."
Cleveland secured the defensive rebound off Curry's miss and LeBron James eventually iced the game with a late free throw.
The two-time MVP finished the title-deciding game with 17 points on 6-of-19 shooting - including a 4-of-14 mark from distance. Golden State lost three consecutive games to blow a 3-1 series lead, during which Curry averaged 24 points on 36.7 percent shooting while turning the ball over four times per game.
