Though he had just survived a feat of strength from Derek Fisher, LeBron James followed it up by driving into the teeth of the Thunder's defense and dunking over Serge Ibaka. It was a terrific move late in a big game, but James was noticeably absent as the teams continued play on the other side of the floor. In Ibaka's defense of the dunk, he had smacked LeBron square in the face.
LeBron gets whacked on dunk, leaves game with bloody nose
James passed a concussion test and will undergo X-rays later.
LeBron stayed down for a while as the camera discovered he had a severe nosebleed. After a few scary moments writhing in pain on the floor, James got up, a little shaken, and headed to the locker room.
A little later, TNT’s sideline reporter Craig Sager said they didn’t have an update yet, but noted that LeBron looked “a bit wobbly” as he was helped to the locker room. After the game, Heat beat reporter Ethan Skolnick said LeBron passed a concussion test though they hadn’t taken X-rays yet. Erik Spoelstra said James would be reevaluated back in Miami.
Spo on @KingJames’ status (nose): "He’s got a swollen nose right now. It’s sore. We’ll reevaluate him when we get back to Miami."
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) February 21, 2014 The Heat won handily, 103-81. LeBron was an instrumental factor to their ultimate victory, scoring 33 points, including 16 points in the first quarter alone.
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