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Stephen A. Smith completely dismisses LeBron James’ game winner

By Aikansh Chaudhary

LOS ANGELES, CA - MAY 19: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers scores the game winning three point basket against Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors in the closing minute of an NBA Tournament Play-In game at Staples Center on May 19, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - MAY 19: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers scores the game winning three point basket against Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors in the closing minute of an NBA Tournament Play-In game at Staples Center on May 19, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images) /
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The Los Angeles Lakers booked a seat in the 2021 NBA playoffs following a tremendous victory against Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors. In a closely fought battle, the Lakers pulled a 103-100 victory behind a staggering game-winner by none other than LeBron James.

Although James struggled to get going in the first half, he turned things around in the final half of the matchup. He finished the fixture with a 22 point triple-double and of course with the game-winning three-pointer over Steph Curry.

Stephen A. Smith opens up about LeBron James’ game-winner over the Warriors. 

Following the breathtaking shot, James and co. clinched the seventh seed in the West. They will face off against the Phoenix Suns on Sunday night in the first round of the 2021 NBA Playoffs.

While most Lakers fans are in awe of this unbelievable shot by LeBron, NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith believes luck played a great part in this shot (as seen in the video embedded below).

"“I still think LeBron James wasn’t 100% but he still went into his bag and handled his business in the second half and credit due to him. With greatness comes luck and that lucky shot with 58 seconds left, make no mistake about it that was luck.”"

LeBron James is unarguably one of the greatest players of this generation. However, as Stephen A. explained, even the greatest players need some luck on their side from time to time.

No doubt LBJ’s shot was extremely clutch and helped the Lakers advance to the playoffs, but considering the fact that James made the shot from 34-feet away with the shot clock running down, LeBron had some luck on his side.

Read More: LeBron bails out the Los Angeles Lakers in Play-In matchup over Warriors

LeBron James shares his point of view about the game-winner

Prior to nailing down the huge shot, LeBron clashed with Draymond Green at the rim a few plays ago. As a result, James was squinting his eyes and had his vision compromised to some extent.

After the game was over, James shed some light on his side of the story regarding the game-winning shot despite the obvious discomfort.

He told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols, “I put in a lot of work on my game. After Draymond’s finger to the eye I was literally seeing 3 rims out there … I (went for) the middle one.”

At the end of the day, James showed up for the team when they needed him the most. But the journey has just started for the defending champions. They have to face another top opponent in the first round of the playoffs.

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Until then, what were your thoughts on LeBron James’ game-winner against the Warriors? Do you believe he was lucky or it was his skill? Let us know your views in the comments section below.