The NBA Finals is a setting in which role players can make a name for themselves and where star players can become legends. In recent years, we have seen some of the greatest single-game performances of all time on the league’s biggest stage. While some of these moments have come in losses, it does not take away from the greatness and level of dominance that was shown in these three games.
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1. LeBron James Game One of the 2018 NBA Finals
The first top single-game performance in the NBA Finals in recent history game from LeBron James in game one of the 2018 NBA Finals. In this series, James found himself with little to no help against arguably the best team that has ever been assembled in the history of the NBA. While the Golden State Warriors roster featured Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, and Draymond Green, James would have Kevin Love and Kyle Korver as the most talented pieces of his supporting cast.
Despite the odds being greatly stacked against him, James would nearly lead the Cavaliers to victory in the opening game of the series. However, with just a second left in the game after George Hill failed to sink a free throw, J.R. Smith would dribble out the remaining time in regulation and send the game to overtime.
After one of the biggest blunders of NBA Finals history, James would seemingly check out of the game and the series would be finished from there. It was even rumored that after the game James would break his hand punching a whiteboard. Although the Cavaliers would end up losing the game, this was arguably the greatest single-game performance a player has ever accomplished in the Finals. James would finish the game with 51 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block while shooting 59.4% from the field and 42.9% from three.
2. Giannis Antetokounmpo Game Six of the 2021 NBA Finals
In game six of the 2021 NBA Finals, Giannis Antetokounmpo would establish himself as the best player in the world. In this season, Antetokounmpo was unstoppable and in the closeout game of the series, he would have one of the greatest single-game performances in recent NBA Finals history.
He would finish the game with an incredible 50 points, 14 rebounds, 2 assists, and 5 blocks while shooting 64.0% from the field and 33.3% from three. The Milwaukee Bucks would end up winning the game by seven points, and Giannis would take home the first NBA title of his career.
3. LeBron James and Kyrie Irving Game Five of the 2016 NBA Finals
The final incredible performance comes from a pair of teammates. In the 2016 NBA Finals, the Cleveland Cavaliers made history on multiple fronts. In game five, Kyrie Irving and LeBron James would be the first pair of teammates to ever both score 40 points or more in the same game in the Finals. James and Irving would both be unstoppable in this game. Things got so bad that at the time of the final buzzer, the duo would combine for more field goals than the entire Golden State roster.
Irving would finish the contest with 41 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block while shooting an elite 70.8% from the field and 71.4% from three. While James would put up an equally impressive 41 points, 16 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks while shooting 53.3% from the field and 50.0% from three. While they would only win one game together, James and Irving were one of the most talented duos that the league has ever seen. Their games complimented each other perfectly, and it is a shame that they did not stay together longer.
On top of making history as being the only pair of teammates to ever both go for 40 points or more in a Finals game, just two games later, the Cavaliers would become the only team in the history of the NBA to come back from a 3-1 lead.
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