You sort of take for granted that players playing crunch time of the NBA Finals are fully aware of the game situation on any given play.
Then JR Smith went and proved all of us wrong in the final seconds of regulation in Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals.
With the game tied and George Hill of the Cleveland Cavaliers shooting the second of two free throws to possibly take a lead with less than five seconds left, both the Cavs and Golden State Warriors braced for a possible miss that could give either team one more possession to win the game.
Hill missed but instead of the ball falling into the hands of the Warriors, it floated to Smith just feet from the basket. And then, this happened…
Smith dribbled the ball out to half-court, clearly thinking that the Cavs had the lead. By the time he realized that the game was tied it was too late.
The game went into overtime and instead of LeBron James finishing an all-time great NBA Finals performance by stealing a win on the road, the Warriors dominated the extra period to hold home court.
Social media is already having a field day with this one…
Game 2 is Sunday night.
