National Basketball Association

LeBron James finally played like the best player in these NBA Finals

Published Jun. 8, 2016 11:45 p.m. ET

Andrew Lynch

"Follow my lead and do your job."

That was LeBron James' pregame message to his Cavaliers. Yes, they were without Kevin Love. Yes, they were down 2-0. But they were at home, and if they could just take care of business, we'd have a series on our hands.

Right out of the gate, the King's horsemen did his bidding. A 9-0 start gave Cleveland plenty of breathing room, and that gave way to a 20-point lead in the first quarter. LeBron, though, wasn't quite holding up his end of the bargain. He didn't look like a leader in the first half. Whatever fire in his eye we might have expected with the Cavs backed up against the wall simply wasn't there. LeBron was cool and calculating, because that's who he is. He'll be the first person to acknowledge he's not Michael Jordan, after all.

But in part because of LeBron's placid first half, the Warriors started to make a game of it. By halftime, that deficit was down to eight points, and it felt like a Golden State onslaught was inevitable.

Instead, it was the King who went on the warpath. James ratcheted up the intensity in the second half. He threw down monster dunks. He ripped the ball away from Stephen Curry in a moment as vicious as it was perfectly poetic. And he kept the Warriors at bay. More than that, he buried them, as the Cavs came away with a 120-90 win.

There will be two contrasting storylines for LeBron and Cleveland going forward — you know, other than the whole Love question, which is a story for another day. On the one hand, part of James' late charge was an apparent rediscovery of his jumper. LeBron isn't the athletic marvel that he used to be, and the Warriors have done a fine job of preventing him from getting to the rim in the halfcourt.

If he's knocking down jumpers, though, then everything changes. Golden State has to give him a little more respect on the perimeter, which opens up the interior and allows Cleveland to become the free-flowing offensive machine we've seen in previous rounds. Once the Cavs' offense gets going, it cuts down on the Warriors' transition opportunities. And so it goes, a feedback loop that keeps churning out results in Cleveland's favor.

Yet in order for the Cavs to finally break through against the Warriors, LeBron had to play major minutes (40). So too did the rest of the Cleveland starters. Now, they'll have just one night off before Friday's Game 4. They're going to be exhausted, and that fatigue will take its toll on their shooting. The Warriors, meanwhile, probably aren't going to shoot less than 28 percent from deep again, as they did in Game 3, especially if the Cavs don't have the energy to contest shots like they did on Wednesday.

But they'd better find that energy, no matter what it takes. They've hit the champ in the mouth, and they've watched the Warriors bleed. There are no excuses anymore. This Cavs team can win a championship — if its King plays like the force he was in Game 3.

It's up to you, LeBron. Lead the way.