NBA Finals: Ranking the 10 Greatest Performances of the Warriors-Cavs Rivalry

#6 LeBron James' Epic 51 points in Game 1 of the 2017-18 Finals

LeBron James scores 51 points in Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals

Stat line: 51 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists and 2 steals

LeBron entering the Finals for the 8th straight time was facing the Warriors for the 4th time in a row. With the Cavaliers being massive underdogs entering into Game 1, all the responsibility was on LeBron’s shoulders once again to produce another masterpiece if they had any chance of winning against this loaded Warriors team.

LeBron James topped all expectations and played some of the best basketball of his career as he scored playoff career-high 51 points. He was just unstoppable and even a great defensive team like the Warriors were mere spectators to the show that the 3-time champion put on display.

Gotta feel for @KingJames. #NBAFinals #WhateverItTakes(h/t @BleacherReport) pic.twitter.com/c9G1rgVVQr

— SK Basketball (@Basketball_SK) June 1, 2018

With this performance, he became the first player in 25 years to top the 50-point milestone in a Finals game becoming only the sixth player to ever score 50 in a Finals game. The last person to do so was none other than his airiness, Michael Jordan, who torched the Charles Barkley Phoenix Suns in Game 4 of 1993 NBA Finals. Speaking of Jordan, James tied him for the most 30 point games in playoff history within this game and also tied Jerry West for most 40-point games in a single postseason with eight.

Sadly for LeBron, even after putting a once in a lifetime performance, he lost the game 121-114 in OT due to George Hill’s missed free throw and J.R. Smith’s blunder in the end. With this loss, James became the first player in NBA History to lose a match after scoring 50 in the game. Even though LeBron lost, this performance will definitely be one of the best games he has ever played in his career.