Remember when J.R. Smith caught the NBA world’s eye with his PhunkeeDuck, the motorized skateboard-type gadget that carried him to the locker room before Game 4 in style?
At that moment, Smith and his Cleveland Cavaliers held a 2-1 lead over the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. A lot has changed in five days.
Of course, the Warriors won the series’ next three games, which turned out to be the final three games, and took home the Larry O’Brien Trophy after Tuesday night’s 105-97 Game 6 win in Cleveland.
And Smith made only eight 3-pointers the rest of the series after his grand entrance, despite shooting 31 of them. He was apparently not interested in using Cavaliers coach David Blatt’s halftime speech as motivation, as a camera caught him staring off despondently while Blatt preached spacing.
Well, the Warriors may now own the O’Brien, and they’ll get the parade in Oakland, too. And the rings. And the banner.
But they aren’t getting the PhunkeeDuck. Win or lose, no one takes J.R.’s ride. As evidenced by his slow, sad exit from the locker room after his season ended Tuesday.