After arriving in New Orleans, the Cavaliers held an open practice as they had in the past.
What differed from the previous few games was that, after practice ended, the Cavaliers allowed reporters to conduct interviews!
The reporters were thrilled by the news. James, Whiteside, and Lue were immediately swarmed by reporters.
Irving was in a slightly awkward position. He finished practice a little later, wanted to do an interview, only to find that no one paid him any attention. He simply headed back to the locker room by himself.
Come to think of it, over the two years since James had joined the Cavaliers, reporters had paid less and less attention to him. Now, his presence was practically optional.
"Why is the team accepting interviews today? Is it because this might be the final game?"
A young and energetic FOX Sports intern seized the first chance to ask a question and directed it straight at James.
"..."
After James responded with a stretch of silence, the reporter was quickly squeezed out by the others.
Even stirring up trouble required choosing the right occasion. That intern was clearly still too green.
"Are you confident the team will win tonight?"
A TNT reporter asked next, phrasing the question much more gently.
"Yes. We've always remained confident. I know tonight's game will be difficult, but we're confident."
James answered.
"I believe in my teammates. I believe in them."
After finishing, he added one more sentence.
It seemed to have been influenced by what Jones had said on the plane, but it also sounded like something he was telling himself.
"We'll come back from 1-3. We nearly did it last year, and now we'll do it. That won't be a problem at all."
Whiteside was asked a similar question over there, but his