After the game yesterday, I felt very sentimental since I’ve been watching these guys play for over a decade. I feel like the era of Steph, KD, and Lebron has come very close to an end. If this is the ending for the three of them on the international stage though, it’s nothing short of perfect. This final chapter leaves me completely satisfied.
I was fortunate enough to be able to watch this amazing performance live, and the moment the game ended, it felt like an encapsulation of all the wonders I’ve experienced throughout my basketball-watching journey - it had everything I could hope for. These legends left a mark of their era on FIBA’s highest stage. I just wanna say thank you for all the memories. I’ll probably remember that last three-pointer for the rest of my life.
I felt the same way watching yesterday because I’ve witnessed so many of Lebron’s iconic moments. It’s going to be so weird for me when LeBron retires. I’m 34. I remember buying Lebron’s rookie jersey at a K-Mart right before it closed, yes, K-mart. Jumping up and down screaming when he scored 25 straight versus the Pistons. The Decision crushed me. Going out the night he announced he was back wearing my Lebron jersey (that I had not burned). Rushing the streets after the 2016 title with my friends. And yesterday, watching him win gold with my daughter. It’s absolutely astonishing how long he’s played and that I was a middle schooler and now practically an old man and can trace so many memories to watching him play basketball.
When he does finally retire, it’s going to be a gut punch.