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During the regular season, the merits of NBA players taking nights off became a story again as top teams had their best players sit out recent nationally televised games. But LeBron has seemingly come up with another way to make sure he is in peak condition for the Finals: he has become more efficient in the earlier rounds.
During the 2016 NBA Finals James carried the Cavs back from a 3-1 deficit, a performance that was no doubt aided by the fact that he did not need to grind out any long series earlier in the playoffs, logging just 530 minutes played while going 12-2 in the first three rounds. That was well below the 645 minutes he averaged in the first three rounds in his previous five trips to the NBA Finals.
This year, LeBron logged 532 minutes in the first three rounds, as the Cavs went 12-1. That doesn't mean the Cavs are going to win, but James should be just as fresh and rested as last year. That will be an advantage for the Cavs if this series goes deep.
Diana Yukari/Business Insider