Kevin Durant says he remembers the time when LeBron James dropped a massive 51 point bomb on the Magic in 2011.
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LeBron James shook the realm of NBA basketball in the summer of 2010 by making his decision to join forces with Dwyane Wade in South Beach. After continual postseason disappointment with losses to the likes of the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic, ‘The King’ had had enough took his talents to South Beach.
Immediately having the narrative shift after making this free agency move, LeBron James was hit with a label he was never hit with before by the media: a villain. James owned it however as did the rest of the Miami Heat guys.
Despite starting the season off with a loss against the team that ousted James from the Playoffs the previous season (Celts), they would eventually start to figure things out. The Heat even went on a 21-1 run from November 29th to January 9th before slowing down.
One game that stands out during that 2011 regular season for the Miami Heat is one where James put the entirety of his offensive skillset on display against their inter-state rival, the Orlando Magic.
LeBron James went off for 51 points against the Magic.
Seemed as though LeBron James had some pent up aggression left within him towards the Orlando Magic for beating his Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2009 ECF as went ballistic against them on a fated meeting on February 3rd, 2011.
On this day, the eventual 4x champ went off for 51 points on an incredibly efficient 17-25 shooting from the field. He did everything from post-up, drive in with his usual killer intent, get to the free throw line with pure aggression, and rain in three 3s including the game-deciding one that got a classic “James for 3!” call from Marv Albert.
Kevin Durant commented under the post showcasing the highlights from this game saying, “Remember watching this sh*t live”: something a lot of us can say given the pure dominance LeBron put on display.
That would be James’s highest scoring game of the 2010-11 NBA season as his second highest would be a 44 point game against the Portland Trailblazers on January 9th. He wouldn’t score 50+ points again for three years until he did so against the Charlotte Bobcats which was actually a bout he dropped 61 in, his career high.
