‘Cramping’ LeBron James will play in Game 5 of the NBA Finals – NBA News
A day after Miami Heat star forward LeBron James sat out the final few minutes of game 4 of the NBA Finals, he said that he is recovering well from the cramps that bothered him at the end of the final period.
LeBron James was seen being stretched by team physicians in the closing minutes of Game 4 of the NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and did not feature in the final few minutes of the game. The Miami Heat defeated the
Thunder 104-98 to take a 3-1 lead in the series.
With a chance of winning the NBA championship in Game 5 Thursday night at the American Airlines Arena, James says that he will be ready for the game.
He took part in team practice on Wednesday and expects to be fully recovered by Thursday.
"I feel a lot better than I did last night, that's clear. I'm still a little sore because of the muscles being at an intense level -- very tight. ... I should be fine,” said James.
James said that he received treatment for the cramps on Tuesday night and then again on Wednesday morning. He has been taking extra fluids and food to prepare him for game 5 and prevent the cramps from coming up again. He suffered
from cramps the previous two years in the playoffs as well.
James has been excellent throughout the series and is the main reason why Miami are up 3-1, even though he has received much assistance from his teammates through the first 4 games. He scored 26 points, 9 rebounds and 12 assists,
almost shy of a triple double in the Game 4 victory.
The American Airlines Arena was quite warm on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning when the team practiced. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said that he will ensure his teams take plenty of fluids in preparation of Game 5 to combat the
heat.
"We'll be more proactive now that we know what the environment is like. We're from down here so hopefully it'll be to our advantage,” said Spoelstra.
After losing to the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals last year, the Miami Heat have the opportunity to win the championship on Thursday night in front of their home crowd.
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