Former Miami Heat Guard Reminisces On Legendary Playoff Performance

For the early part of the 2010s, the Miami Heat were the juggernaut of the entire NBA, let alone just the Eastern Conference. With the "Big Three" of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, the sky was the limit for that unit. During that four-season stretch with the three superstars, the team went to the NBA Finals every year and won two NBA championships. James took home the Most Valuable Player award twice (2012, 2013) while also being named to the All-NBA First Team throughout all four seasons. Wade was named to the All-NBA Second Team in 2011 along with the All-NBA Third Team both in 2012 and 2013. Bosh was named an All-Star each season alongside James and Wade. While the "Big Three" was fantastic as a trio, James really stood out as the team's face.

Mario Chalmers, the Heat's starting point guard throughout most of the "Big Three" era, recently shared his favorite story about James as a player. His favorite moment with James as a teammate comes from Game Six against the Boston Celtics in the 2012 Eastern Conference Finals.

“He came into the locker room, looked at everybody and was like, ‘Get me the ball and get on my back,'" Chalmers recounted. "We saw the results. When he really puts his mind to it, it’s over. Can’t anybody stop him.”

The 2012 Eastern Conference Finals were one of the most memorable playoff series in the last couple of decades. The Heat led the series 2-0 before the Celtics clawed back. It eventually went to a Game Seven and James took his game to another level. He scored 31 points and added 12 rebounds along with two assists and one steal and one block each. Chalmers dished out seven assists in that same game, surprisingly none of which went to James.

The Heat would obviously end up beating the stacked Celtics roster in seven games, before they beat the Oklahoma City Thunder in five games in the NBA Finals. The "Big Three" stuck together for another two seasons in Miami before it started going a bit downhill. James left Miami to rejoin the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he would lead them to four straight Eastern Conference titles along with a historic championship against the Golden State Warriors.

James has been renowned for being one of the best playoff performers of all time and hearing a teammate reminisce on the historic performance is refreshing. Chalmers played alongside James for all of the latter's seasons in Miami. Now, James is looking to make another playoff run with the Philadelphia 76ers, who are one of the favorites to win the title in the Eastern Conference.