OAKLAND, Calif. - George Hill missed a free throw that will live in infamy on the Lake Erie shoreline in the first game of the NBA Finals.
It could have put the Cleveland Cavaliers ahead by a point in the last four seconds in a game they lost by 10 in overtime. It could have spared everyone J.R. Smith's brain (gaseous emission) when he dribbled out the clock with the rebound.
There's always "live in the moment"
Players always make an effort to grab the mental eraser, the same one that rubbed out Smith's game awareness, by saying it is "time move on," "put it behind us," "focus on the next game" because "one play didn't decide that game" and "we win and lose as a team."
Did I miss a cliche?
"Tomorrow is another day" perhaps, from Scarlett O'Hara in "Gone With the Wind"?
Miss and moan
But among the many small shades of difference that many national pundits thought would add up to a total eclipse of the Cavs in four games is free throw shooting.
It's not really free. A miss at the wrong time exacts a price on a player forever, even if it is only to make him the answer to a trivia question.
The all-time day of infamy befell Nick Anderson, a 70.4 percent shooter. In the opener of the 1995 Finals, Orlando's 20-point lead over Houston had melted to three. In the final eight seconds, Anderson missed four free throws in a row - front of rim, front of rim, and, overcompensating, back of rim, back of rim.
Kenny Smith, now mainly known as one of Charles Barkley's sidekicks on TNT's "Inside the NBA" show, tied it with a 3-pointer, and the Rockets won in overtime. The Finals curtain soon fell on Orlando in a stunning sweep by the Rockets.
Kawhi Leonard missed a free throw in the final seconds of Game 6 in the 2013 Finals that would have given San Antonio a two-possession lead.
Ray Allen hit a three to tie it for Miami. LeBron James won his second championship ring after the Heat survived Game 6 in overtime and then won Game 7.
Leonard was the Finals MVP against Miami the very next season, so players do recover from their flubs.
Stat corner
Hill, an 80.5 percent free throw shooter, did not handle the pressure as well as former Cavalier super-sub Matthew Dellavedova did in swishing two at the line at the last gasp to win Game 2 here in the 2015 Finals by a point.
Hill in some ways reverted to the Cavs' norm. They ranked 12th in the NBA in the regular season in free throw shooting at 77.5 percent.
Golden State shot 81.7 percent to lead the league.
But wait! There's more!
Kyle Korver, 88.9 percent on the season and in the playoffs, missed his lone attempt, after the Warriors were called for an illegal defense.
Larry Nance Jr. missed three of four.
The Cavs were 16 of 22, 72.7 percent.
Golden State was 19 of 20, 95 percent.
Game 2
What makes it more galling is that the NBA admitted Friday that Draymond Green committed a lane violation on Hill's miss. In that disgraceful late fourth-quarter jumble of questionable and blown calls by the referees, Hill never got the mulligan he deserved.
Tomorrow is indeed another day. Sunday is the date of Game 2.
If the Cavs want to be utterly unexpected champions, they will have to make the most of their "free"dom."
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