LeBron James put together yet another terrific performance at Madison Square Garden on Monday night. James fell one rebound short of a triple-double as he went for 23 points, nine rebounds, and 12 assists to lead the Cavs to a come-from-behind win over the New York Knicks.
However, King James easily could’ve had his triple-double had one rebound not been credited to Jeff Green instead.
According to a league source, the rebound that would have sealed LeBron a triple-double was changed to Jeff Green. It was deemed that Green had a controlled tip to LeBron and should be properly credited with the rebound.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) November 14, 2017
Ardent Cavs and LeBron James fans might remember something very similar happening to LeBron in another game against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden nearly a decade ago.
As Brian Windhorst, who was then working for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, reported back in 2009, James was also taken away a potential triple-double-clinching rebound, which was significant since it would’ve been the first 50-point triple-double in the NBA since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1975.
There isn’t nearly as much at stake in a historical sense this time around, so LeBron James likely won’t sweat losing another well-earned triple-double. James should be more than satisfied with getting the come-from-behind win and getting the Cavs back up to .500 after a difficult start to the season.
Still, it’s pretty amazing to think how James can twice be docked a triple-double in the same building for the same, somewhat dubious, rebounding credit change.
