OAKLAND, Calif. -- Cleveland’s J.R Smith rebounded a missed George Hill free throw with 4.7 seconds left in the fourth quarter of Game 1 of the NBA Finals against Golden State and looked like he was trying to run out the clock of a tie game instead of looking to score.
Smith claimed he knew the game was tied.
"I knew we were tied, it’s just that I thought we were going to call timeout because I got the rebound," Smith said. "I’m pretty sure everyone didn’t think I was going to shoot it over KD right there.
"If I thought we were ahead, I would’ve just held onto the ball and let them foul me but clearly that wasn’t the case."
Tied at 107, Smith dribbled away from the basket. LeBron James and teammates shouted at Smith, who passed to Hill. Hill couldn’t get the shot off before the game clock expired. The shot didn’t go in anyway.
Had Hill made the foul shot, Cleveland would have been ahead 108-107.
Instead, Golden State dominated overtime and won 124-114, taking a 1-0 series lead.
"He thought it was over," Cavs coach Ty Lue said after the game. "He thought we were up one."
Smith had a brief window to put a shot up after the rebound, but he also had Kevin Durant in front of him near the restricted area.
►WATCH | LeBron James walks out of press conference as reporter questions J.R. Smith's state of mind
"I mean, who knows if JR would have made the lay-up anyway, so it was tough," Lue said. "You know, he had a little floor. Somebody was there."
James could not answer for Smith's decision.
"I knew it was a tie game. We were down 1," James said. "George Hill went up, he made the first one. We got the offensive rebound, you know, I thought we were all aware of what was going on. That's my view. So I don't know what J.R. was thinking."
Smith would not be the first player to lose track of time and score, but it happened at the most inopportune time for Smith and the Cavs.
"I mean, you got to know the score," Golden State's Draymond Green said. "That's just kind of basketball. You got to know if you're winning or losing or tied. Like I said, we'll take it. Sometimes it's good to be a little lucky."
