Cleveland Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith opened up about his infamous blunder in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, calling the head-scratching gaffe an "honest mistake" and saying "people make mistakes all the time" in a story published Tuesday.

The Cavs were tied with the heavily-favored Golden State Warriors with 4.7 seconds left in Game 1 when Smith got a rebound from a missed free throw and dribbled away from the basket instead of shooting — as if he thought Cleveland had already secured the victory.

"I've messed up so many times in my life," Smith told ESPN's The Undefeated. "I mean, I can't just point at one thing to be mad at."

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Smith sent a pass to George Hill, but there wasn't enough time to put up a shot.

The game went to overtime, and the Cavs lost 124-114, surrendering an opportunity to steal a win on the road and set the tone of the Finals. The image of LeBron James frustrated with Smith became a viral meme on the Internet.

“It was tough, but it was the same after Game 2, 3 and 4. I didn’t take it no harder than those losses just because I made a mistake,” Smith told The Undefeated. "We all make mistakes. For my teammates to know that and have my back, (Game 1) wasn’t that bad.

"Talked to my coaches, everybody stood behind me 100%. The main thing was, OK, granted, you didn’t shoot the ball, but what if you ain’t get the rebound? Then what? We still would have been in the same situation. I could have shot and missed. Then what?"

Smith and the Cavaliers open their season Oct. 17 against the Toronto Raptors.