AJ Neuharth-Keusch|USA TODAY
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The Cleveland Cavaliers' first-round series against the Indiana Pacers came down to a win-or-go-home Game 7, but when it was all said and done, LeBron James had completed one of the greatest playoff series performances in NBA history.
Sunday's outing —he finished with 45 points, nine rebounds, seven assists and four steals — was just the exclamation point.
But before we look ahead to Cleveland's Eastern Conference semifinal series with the Toronto Raptors, let's look back at these past seven games during which James' per-game averages of 34.4 points, 10.1 rebounds and 7.7 assists put him in a league of his own. As if he wasn'talready.
By the numbers ...
►This was the fifth playoff series ofJames' career in which heaveraged at least 30 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, something no player in NBA history has done more than once, according to NBA.com/stats.
► Jamesscored 241 points in the first round— 61 more thansecond-place Giannis Antetokounmpo. He also rankedsecond in the leagueinrebounds, second in assistsand first in minutes.
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► After James' scoring total, Kevin Love rankedsecond on the Cavswith 80 points. James also ledClevelandwith 54 assists;Jeff Green wassecond with 11. No other Cavalierscored more than 20 points or tallied more than five assistsin any of the seven games against Indiana.
► Jamesranked thirdin the league in first-round "clutch" points scored with 18 — three of which came on his game-winning, buzzer-beating jumper in Game 5.
► By picking off a pass in the second quarter of Game 7, James became the NBA's all-time leader in postseason steals (396), passing Scottie Pippen.
► His 45 points on Sunday were the second-most in a Game 7 win in playoff history, behind only Sam Jones (47 points in 1963), according to ESPN Stats and Info. Game 7 also marked James'200th time scoring 20 or more points in a playoff game— the most of all-time.
► James now has a career first-round record of 13-0. He's also 5-2 in Game 7s with five consecutive victories.
