The Miami Heat exacted revenge on the Oklahoma City for the late-January thrashing OKC doled out in South Beach, but the Heat's victory came with a price--LeBron James' face.
James left the game in the fourth quarter with a possible concussion after he was whacked by Thunder forward Serge Ibaka on a drive to the basket. James passed a concussion test after the game, and is set to have X-rays done on his injured nose. He left the court bloodied, but still probably pleased with the W.
"He got hit pretty good down there," Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said. "I'm like everybody else, you're used to seeing him like Superman, get up and sprint back even after tough hits and tough falls. So we knew something was up."
James had some fun with it post-game on Twitter, writing "I mean I just might have to...BaneJames."
LeBron's teammate Dwyane Wade said James seemed okay after taking the shot. "Biggest thing he said was, 'Is it broke?' " Wade said. "But hopefully it's not and he'll be back."
Prior to becoming a crimson mess, James used Thursday night's game as a platform to re-establish his MVP candidacy against his rival Kevin Durant, who had stolen his thunder (pun intended) for a solid portion of the season. James finished the night with 33 points, seven rebounds, three assists and four steals.
His effort spoiled the return of Oklahoma City point guard Russell Westbrook, who scored 16 points on 4-of-12 shooting and had two assists in 24 minutes. "I'm just going to keep getting him better, and as the season goes along, as he gets more comfortable in game shape, we're going to see a better Russell every night," Thunder coach Scott Brooks said.
The Thunder struggled to make shots, a rare occurrence for the best team in the NBA record-wise. "When you don't have good rhythm, normally the three-ball can get you back into the game," Brooks said. "We didn't have shot makers tonight. We've had them for a while now. We didn't have them tonight."
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