LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers have pulled off a stunning upset victory, beating Golden State Warriors 93-89 in game seven of the NBA Finals to win a first-ever title for the franchise.
The loss completes a devastating turnaround for the Warriors, led by league MVP Stephen Curry, who had a record 73-9 record in the regular season, and then led the NBA Finals series 3-1.
The Cavaliers become the first team to ever come from 3-1 down to win the NBA Finals.
James put up unbelievable number all series, and produced another masterclass in the decider.
On top of scoring 27 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and dishing 11 assists, James produced the play of the game and arguably the series.
With scores tied at 89-89, opposing forward Andre Iguodala appeared to have a fastbreak lay-up for the taking, but James produced a stunning chasedown block.
Then point guard Kyrie Irving nailed a superb stepback three-pointer to give the Cavaliers a decisive lead.
"He took us home tonight and that's what he does. That's what great players do," Irving said of James.
The series victory was revenge for a Cleveland side that went down 4-2 to the Warriors in last year's finals.
Bron breaks the drought
Ohio native James collapsed to the floor as he won his third championship, but the first with his hometown Cavaliers.
"I gave everything that I had," James said.
A Cleveland team has not won a major sports title since the Browns won the National Football League title way back in 1964
James was hailed as the man to end the drought when he was drafted to Cleveland back in 2003, but he could only take the team to one Finals series, a 4-0 loss to San Antonio in 2007, before leaving for the Miami Heat in 2010.
The 31-year-old returned before the 2014/15 season after four straight trips to the finals with Heat, penning a letter in Sports Illustrated about his homecoming and outlining his mission to break the drought.
"I understood what the people of north-east Ohio have been through for the last 50-plus years," a clearly emotional James said when asked why winning a title for Cleveland meant so much after returning home after winning two titles in Miami in 2012 and 2013.
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