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Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron James win NBA championship: photos
Cleveland sports fans erupted in celebration on Sunday after the Cavaliers net a victory in game seven of the NBA championship.
LeBron James #23 and Kyrie Irving #2 of the Cleveland Cavaliers celebrate after defeating the Golden State Warriors 93-89 in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals at ORACLE Arena on June 19, 2016 in Oakland, Calif.
By Olivia Kestin, Olivia Kestin
As the clock wound down and the buzzer sounded, LeBron James fell to the ground and let the emotion pour forth. After leaving Cleveland to win two championships with Miami, James returned with a specific goal in mind: “I came back for a reason,” James said after the game. “I came back to bring a championship to our city.”
On Sunday night, for the first time in franchise history, the Cleveland Cavaliers were NBA champions, defeating the Golden State Warriors in game seven of the NBA Finals and bringing the city of Cleveland its first major sports title since 1964. It wasn’t the only history made in these finals. The Cavaliers became the first team to rally from a 3-1 series deficit, with James leading the way with 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists in the final game. It was one of the most unbelievable performances in NBA finals history — all while his team was considered the underdog in their match up with Golden State, which had a record-setting 73-win season. James was unanimously voted finals MVP.