In the 2009 Playoffs, LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers fell to a shocking exit to the Orlando Magic, led by Dwight Howard and featuring a young J.J. Redick. LeBron and Redick now have a podcast together and discuss that infamous series that ended in six games. LeBron had a lot of negative feelings with that series.
“I didn’t talk to the media after the game, I was pissed. I took a show, got my sh*t, and went to the bus.”
James would then open up further on that infamous 2009 loss to the Magic, revealing how he succeeded in pure athleticism and criticized himself for not being a disciplined shooter at the time.
“I have not watched that series since it happened. To think that I averaged damn near 40/8/8 in a series with no space is… If I caught a good heater, I could make a couple of threes in a row, but that wasn’t my thing. I lived in the post. I did not have my signature move yet. I was not a disciplined jump shooter at the time… I would shoot fadeaways for no reason, I would be off-balance for no reason, and I would make shots difficult for no reason… It was just discipline. I was so athletic, I could just will myself.”
(Starts at 31:36)
NBA media had spent that entire year hyping up a possible Cavaliers and Lakers Finals matchup, which would have been the first meeting between LeBron and Kobe Bryant in the Finals. Even though Kobe and the Lakers would make the 2009 Finals and win the Larry O’Brien trophy, James didn’t even get to make it that far because of the Orlando loss.
James averaged 38.5 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 8.0 assists in that series, which was one of the most dominant individual performances in a series loss that we had seen in a very long time. James has since never faced the Magic in the playoffs again, more consumed by beating a bigger rival in the East at the time.
The Cavaliers Built Themselves To Play The Celtics
One of the reasons why Orlando’s style with mobile wings and guards who could shoot the skin out of the ball, anchored by a defensive juggernaut such as Dwight Howard, was because the Cavaliers weren’t built to stop them. They had deliberately built a team that could challenge the Boston Celtics, who eliminated them from the 2008 Playoffs.
James revealed the same on the podcast, as the Cavs were only equipped to play a certain style of basketball that they couldn’t adapt in the series against Orlando.
“The whole season, we geared our team up to play Boston. Everything was geared to play Boston. Everything. We never practiced anything besides two bigs, a point guard, a small forward, and a shooting guard. and then you guys win. And it’s like we’ve geared up. We had Z, Anderson Varejao, myself, Delonte, and Mo Williams. Then you guys are out there with Dwight, Rashard, Hedo, Jameer, Pietrus, and Courtney Lee.”
The Magic ultimately beat both the Celtics and Cavaliers, earning their spot in the Finals. However, their experimental new style was out of its depth against Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant, as the Lakers cruised to the first championship of the Shaq-less, Kobe Bryant era.
The Magic’s success in 2009 didn’t change the face of the conference, as the Cavaliers and Celtics went back to being the two biggest threats in the East next season. They would meet up in the playoff again, as the Celtics would beat a hapless Cavaliers roster to return to the Finals and send LeBron to Miami, where he’d finally get his revenge.
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