27 straight wins: The most dominant stretch of LeBron James’ career

Lebron James A deep pull from Akron-based restaurant chain, Swenson’s banana milkshakes and a special postgame catering request Miami Heat A standard order he used to order whenever he was in town. As soon as he finished, James sat back in his chair after a long, strange night.

“It was one of the strangest, strangest days of my life,” he said, half-smiling and half-sighing.

It was almost midnight on March 20, 2013, and James had experienced one of the most memorable, historic and impactful moments of his career.

The Heat had just secured their victory at the height of the Heatless phenomenon 24th consecutive game After a 27-point comeback in the second half cleveland.

Arguments can be made about when James was at the peak of his career.

Some people may favor this 2016 finalWhen they were down 3-1 to the Cavaliers, surprisingly Upset in seven games Above Stephen Curry and 73-win Golden State Warriors. Others may point to a breathtaking run during the 2018 playoffs, the last of an incredible streak of eight consecutive trips to the Finals.

But the winter and early spring of 2013 also have their place. At the age of 28, with his athleticism at full strength, his mature skill development, and the Heat designing a roster and system around him that allowed him to fully blossom, James and his team were Horrible League.

He’ll be with James on Thursday nights whenever he returns to Miami and the Kasia Center Los Angeles LakersUncertain about his future and whether this could be his last journey, the memory of 2013 title The victories he achieved in the building are never far from his mind.

And at the core of those memories is 27-game winning streak The Heat put together a season that was the second longest in NBA history.

Now 13 years later, the stories from that era have aged like one of James’s favorite fine red wines.

February 3, 2013: Win No. 1

It was a cold Sunday afternoon in Toronto, a notorious condition that has frustrated many teams for decades. but suffered a disappointing loss to the opponent Indiana Pacers Two days earlier, having been beaten by the Pacers for the second time that season, the Heat were in no mood for such a performance.

James, dwayne wade And chris bosh Combined for 81 points on 60% shooting in the win 100-85. This was the beginning of a series of mind-numbingly efficient games.

it was Too Super Bowl Sunday.

Baltimore Ravens And san francisco 49ers was facing Super Bowl XLVIIAnd the heat was at its peak. Their charter plane, after clearing customs, likely won’t be able to take off until kickoff. At the time, there was no live TV or Wi-Fi on the plane and everyone would be in the dark for three hours on the flight back to Miami, missing most of the game.

But the team officials were surprised. He delayed the flight and rented a section of Real Sports, the famous Toronto sports bar next to the Raptors Arena, which has a 40-foot-wide screen. And there was also an open bar.

The beer flowed and the heat moved forward shane battier Drunken theft on anchor steam Colin Kaepernick Jersey from a dummy set up for the occasion. Later, on the way to the airport, Battier grabbed the microphone on the bus and gave an impromptu speech to his drunken teammates.”touch people“As he urged them to take advantage of Heat’s popularity in that time and place.

“I was feeling the love. It was one of the great days of being a teammate. I just felt like somebody had to say something to capture that moment,” Battier said on “The Ozzies” show in 2024.

There will be no loss for the next 52 days.

February 26, 2013: Victory No. 12

Knowing that the Heat’s three big stars would have to sacrifice shots when playing together, coach Erik Spoelstra sold them on a multi-year plan to emphasize efficiency.

Take high-value, high-percentage and high-leverage shots, he told them, and their scores won’t go down.

It all came together during this race – almost. Very Well.

The ball movement and transitions from defense-to-offense were going well, and James, Bosh and Wade were constantly looking for only great shots – to the extent that sometimes bench players would yell at passing shots that were merely “good”.

During a six-game span in the streak, James made 72% The average of his shots was 31 points. Over a nine-game span, Wade made 61% of his shots and averaged 28 points. And over a six-game span, Bosh made 65% of his shots and averaged .23.

it culminated here Double-OT 141-129 win Above Sacramento Kings. James scored 40 points on 23 shots with a career-high 16 assists. Wade had 39 points on 28 shots. This was his last game of February. James shot 64% for the month.

The next day, the Heat secretly made a viral video of him harlem shake videoAfter bringing a bunch of costumes and props and then hiding in the locker room, they refused to tell the coaches and staff what they were doing.

The bizarre response to the trend of the moment received millions of hits the following week, further solidifying that whatever the team did at that moment turned to gold.

“That day in practice we were in a daze,” Wade recalled in a recent Amazon Prime broadcast. “We were there laughing like little kids. Spo was angry at us because we were laughing too much.”

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Flashback: Heat used strong defense, LeBron’s 16th consecutive win

On March 6, 2013, the Heat screwed the Magic in the final minutes with LeBron James scoring the game winner in the final seconds.

March 6, 2013: Win No. 16

With less than a minute remaining, a three-point lead and possession of the ball orlando magic Thought they were going to end this series. It was a statement game from the young big man Nikola VucevicWho had 25 points and 21 rebounds.

But the Heat’s defense tightened up when it mattered most, finishing the game with five consecutive stops. That set up a winner from James, who hit a driving layup with 3.2 seconds remaining to save the streak and clinch the win. 97-96.

James had 24 points, his 200th consecutive regular season game in which he scored in double figures. He would do this 1,097 more times over the next 12 and a half years.

“He’s defined by winning games,” Spoelstra said that night. “He just keeps making them.”

March 18, 2013: Win No. 23

heat and celticsBy this point their rivalry deepened, making for appointment viewing, especially the games in Boston. Although they had defeated the Celtics in the playoffs the previous two seasons, the Heat had not won a regular season game in Boston in six years.

the celtics were missing rajon rondowhich was just now torn acl in his right knee, and kevin garnettWho was suffering from thigh injury and flu.

In his absence, Jeff Green It was one of the best games of his career, scoring 43 points. With eight minutes remaining, Boston had a 13-point lead and the excited crowd at the TD Garden was eager to celebrate the victory.

But James didn’t let that happen and made an improbable comeback from 17 points down, finishing with 37 points, seven rebounds and 12 assists. He scored 13 in the fourth quarter, tied the game with a clutch layup and then sank the winning 20-footer with 10.5 seconds remaining. final score: heat 105, celtics 103.

He also created a broad highlight that would become one of the defining moment In his career, surpassing his personal rival jason terry. Terry injected and then became better than James during 2011 final when terry was with the victorious dallas mavericks.

james enjoyed put terry on poster. In a rare move, James stood over terry As he lay on the court, veteran referee Scott Foster stepped in and gave a technical foul for taunting James.

James then said, “Having it happen with JT made it even sweeter. Because we all know JT and he talks too much sometimes.” “I’m glad it happened to him.”

And then the Heat returned to Cleveland.

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LeBron flew at Terry for dangerous poster in 2013

On March 18, 2013, LeBron James threw this huge alley-oop slam on Jason Terry and the Celtics.

March 20, 2013: Win No. 24

The Cavaliers took a 27-point lead over the Heat with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter.

three years later-“decision“The fans in Cleveland, notorious for their venom over James’ departure, were relishing the chance to give him a loss that would end the Heat’s chances of snapping the Lakers’ 33-game streak from 1971–72.

But suddenly, Miami got hot from 3-point range. Battier hit three of them. ray allen Hit two. The Cavs couldn’t make a shot or get a defensive rebound. James started the fourth quarter by hitting three straight 3-pointers of his own and the Heat went on a 45–12 run to turn the game around.

Then, with eight minutes left, a young man ran past the security guard and fell to the floor. wearing one white t-shirt With the words “We Miss You” on the front and “Come Back 2014” on the back, they presented themselves to James, who was set to become a free agent the following year.

Heat vice president of team security David Holcombe apprehended the man, James Blair, within seconds. But James stopped Holcombe as he was carrying Blair off the floor and patted the fan on the head.

Blair, a lifelong James fan, told him to “come home” just as he was. dragged across the floor By the police. The next day, after being released from jail, Blair is followed by James on social media Banned by CAV By returning to the field.

James finished with 25 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists, three steals and two blocks win 98-95.

“One of the best comebacks I’ve ever been a part of,” James said before finishing his milkshake.

The Heat’s winning streak ended a week later on March 27 in Chicago, when Chicago Bulls Took a 10-point lead in the first quarter and kept the Heat from going on one of their patented runs. The United Center crowd celebrated heartily after their team’s win win 101-97 To end Heat’s quest for history.

Only one team has achieved more than 20 consecutive wins since then, when the 2015–16 Warriors Started the season 24-0 On their way to their record 73-win season.

The Heat were 29–14 when the streak began and they finished their season on a 37–2 run. they went on to win second consecutive title In another piece of history, a seven-match series with them San Antonio Spurs he was painted Allen’s miraculous 3-pointer To send Game 6 to overtime.

It was never the same again for that Heat group — they lost to the Spurs in a Finals rematch in 2014, and James returned to Cleveland that summer — but the streak endures as that team’s trademark.

Heat president Pat Riley said last month, referencing James’ departure after one year, “I want him to be around for the next 6-8 years.” “It would have been great, but we’ll never know [how many titles could’ve been won]Shall we?”

James, who hugged Riley when he was in Los Angeles to unveil his statue outside the Crypto.com Arena in February, cherishes the time.

James said, “The four years we had were pretty good. We were able to pick up two chips.” “Lots of great memories. Lots of great times spent there.”