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LeBron: Game 1 win was 'one of my worst games of the season'

John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports / Action Images

The Cleveland Cavaliers didn't need franchise star LeBron James at his best to knock off the Toronto Raptors on the road Tuesday night.

James was critical of his own performance following his team's 113-112 overtime win at the Air Canada Centre in Game 1. While he notched his second triple-double of the playoffs with 26 points, 11 rebounds, and 13 assists, the four-time MVP went just 12-of-30 from the field, 1-of-8 from deep, and connected on only one of his six free-throw attempts in 47 minutes.

"We knew we were going to get their best shot today. They knew we didn't have much rest. They knew we didn't have much preparation. They've kind of been waiting around for us," said James afterward. "We just wanted to come in with the best game plan that we could in the short time. Execute offensively.

"Shots weren't going in. Like I said, for me personally, that was probably one of my worst games of the season."

Tuesday marked just the second time in 2017-18 that James attempted 30 or more shots in a game, and he was far more efficient when he did so Nov. 3 against the Washington Wizards, draining 23-of-34 for a season-high 57 points.

James was particularly inept from the field in both the fourth quarter and extra period versus the No. 1-seeded Raptors, which may be why he doesn't think highly of his contributions. He scored seven points during that stretch but needed 15 shots to get them.

The Cavaliers had four other players come through huge on offense to aid James, with J.R. Smith (20 points), Kyle Korver (19 points), Jeff Green (16 points), and Tristan Thompson (14 points and 12 rebounds) all scoring in double figures.

Toronto and Cleveland are back at it again north of the border Thursday.

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