LeBron James struggles in final Boston summer league game

BOSTON (AP)  Perhaps LeBron James is human after all.

In his final Reebok Summer League game Sunday against Washington, the Cleveland Cavaliers rookie missed a pair of free throws with 15.6 seconds left that would have tied the game. James show just 2-of-14 from the field as the Cavaliers lost to the Wizards 80-76.

After bruising his knee in a collision with Milwaukee point guard T.J. Ford on Saturday, James didn't make the decision to play until game time.

When he entered the gym for warm-ups, fans greeted James with resounding applause, and he acknowledged them with a pair of thunderous dunks on his first two trips through the layup line. He gave the crowd one more thrill in the third quarter when slammed home an alley-oop pass from Darius Miles.

But the game offered few other highlights for James, who finished with nine points, two rebounds, one assist and five turnovers in 24 minutes — all lows for summer league play.

James' crucial missed free throws came after he hit two free throws with 1:07 left to tie the game 75-75.

Miles appeared to bail Cleveland out when he slammed home James' second missed free throw, but Miles was called for goaltending.

James' life has been a whirlwind over the past two weeks, as he has competed in summer leagues in Orlando and Boston, with a trip to the ESPY awards in between. A sore knee and fatigue could have given James an excuse to sit out the finale, but he said he didn't want to sit out his last game before training camp and disappoint a supportive crowd.

"I just gave the fans what they wanted and came out and played," James said.

He began the week with 25 points, nine rebounds and five assists against Boston on Monday, but he flew to Los Angeles to attend the ESPYs and didn't play again until Friday.

In four games, James showed flashes of brilliance, but also some inexperience. The missed free throws in Sunday's game highlighted a rough week at the foul line for James, who hit 13-of-24 from the line.

Overall, James averaged 15.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game.

Cleveland begins training camp in early September. James plans to spend the next few weeks resting his body in preparation for what will surely be one of the most anticipated rookie seasons in sports history.

"A gym and a basketball — I'm always looking forward to it. When I step on the court and we add the rest of the guys we have ... that's going to make us a much better team also, so I'm just looking forward to really playing this season," James said.

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