In an alphabet of 26 letters, there are three that reside deep in the battle-scarred psyche of Northeast Ohioans: O-I-C, only in Cleveland.
The Drive, The Shot, The Fumble, among the major ones, yes, but every Cleveland fan can rattle off their own list.
(Kelly Olynyk’s 2015 assault of Kevin Love in Boston still sticks in my craw.)
So Friday’s overtime-expiring doink three-pointer, which reached heights greater than a World B. Free rainbow floater definitely has the potential to fall into that category.
But what does potential mean? It means it hasn’t happened yet. Yeah, the shot did, we all saw it, but the lasting impact of it is the part of the script the Cavs get to write.
Do you think Orlando Magic fans dwell on LeBron’s incredible 2009 buzzer-beating three-point dagger in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals? Hell no, because they won the series to make the NBA Finals.
Friday’s shot was either the beginning of something or the end of something; the answer is what the Cavs get to determine on Sunday.
Heading into this weekend, there have been 155 Game 7s in NBA history, according to ESPN, and the Cavs have played in eight of them.
The home teams in those games have an astounding record of 115-40. The last time I checked, the Cavs are home Sunday, where they have held serve this series.
Oh, and even more impressive than that .742 winning percentage for home teams in Game 7s is the winning percentage of the Cavs in those series-deciding showdowns.
They are 6-2 all-time, last pulling one off at home over Orlando in 2024. (Overcoming an 18-point deficit to do so, the largest comeback at that time in NBA history.)
The ink is still wet on this one, and the pen is in the Cavaliers’ hand as they get to write the ending and determine who ultimately remembers Friday’s shot.
