After Boston destroyed Cleveland in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals last week, LeBron James seemed not the least bit worried about his team’s lackluster performance.
“I have zero level of concern at this stage,” the Cavaliers said, according to the Sporting News. “There’s no level of concern no matter how bad I played tonight with seven turnovers, how inefficient I was shooting the ball. We have another opportunity to be better as a ballclub...and we’ll see what happens.”
Well, now that the Cavaliers are down 2-0 heading into Game 3 on Saturday night, James admits he’s feeling the pressure.
“I mean, I lose sleep,” the three-time champion told reporters Saturday morning. “At the end of the day, when you lose any game in the postseason, it's never comfort. Playoffs is never comfort. There's nothing about the playoffs that's comfortable until you either win it all or you lose and go into the summer. So for me it's always day to day grind to figure out ways that you can be better.”
As pointed out by the Associated Press, only 6 percent of teams to fall 0-2 in a playoff series were able to bounce back to win it all. Cleveland pulled off this impressive feat twice—in 2007 and 2016—thanks in large part to James. However, the King has also lost four series after trailing 0-2. It's also important to note that Boston has never blown a 2-0 series lead in the playoffs.
When asked how he intends to start a comeback heading into Game 3, James responded: “I mean, just playing the game the right way and see what happens.”
Tipoff is set for 8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
