LeBron James is not one to shy away from a challenge and says he and his Cleveland Cavaliers will not roll over to the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals despite the long odds they face.
No NBA team have ever found their way back after losing the first three games of a best-of-seven series but James was not ready to admit defeat.
"My mindset is to try to get every game. Tomorrow's another important opportunity for us and for myself, obviously, to continue the series," said James, who had a game-high 39 points in the game-three loss.
"It's been a long season, and you hate for it to end this way. So mentally and physically, I got to prepare myself for that."
Perhaps most frustrating for the Cavaliers, who host Friday's game four, is that after two lopsided losses to open the series they returned home and played their most complete game of the finals only to blow a six-point lead in the closing minutes.
The Cavaliers, however, are no stranger to defying odds. They became the first team to triumph after falling into a 3-1 finals deficit when they beat the Warriors in seven games last year.
But the challenge is far more difficult this time, not only because of the bigger deficit but also given the sheer talent of a Warriors group looking to become the first NBA team to win a title without suffering a single post-season loss.
"I knew it was going to be one of the toughest challenges I've had because of the firepower they have, because of the mindset that they were going to have. And they're a hungry group. You can sense that," James said.
The Warriors beat Cleveland in the 2015 finals, lost the rematch a year later after putting together a record-setting 73-win regular season, and then signed four-time scoring champion Kevin Durant to bolster a roster overflowing with talent.
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