And before his team's game with Golden State, LeBron James discussed the importance of Martin Luther King. The match-up between the last three NBA champions was held on the day the US observes the civil rights leader. King was gunned down 50 years ago, but his message of unity is more important now than ever, especially in a politically charged nation, that has become more divisive under the new President.

LEBRON JAMES CLEVELAND CAVALIERS FORWARD "For a man who stood for more than himself. You always hear people saying, 'risking their life.' He actually gave up his life for the betterment of all of us to be able to live in a free world and for us to be able to have a voice, for us to go out and be free no matter your skin color, no matter who you are, no matter the height and size and the weight or whatever the case may be, wherever you are, he had a vision and he took a bullet for all of us, Literally. In the rawest for that you could say that. He literally took a bullet for us. And for us to stand here even though we're trying to be divided right now by somebody, today is a great day for people to realize how America was built and how we all have to stand united in order to be at one. Especially as Americans because we believe, we all know and we all believe, this is the greatest country in the world. So, special shoutout obviously to MLK and everybody who stands with him and obviously his family as well."

STEVE KERR GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS HEAD COACH "I love, I love Martin Luther King Day in terms of what it means to the NBA, what it means to the country. It's become a great day for the NBA because we celebrate basketball but what we're really celebrating is equality and inclusion, which is what the NBA represents. We got players from all over the world, all different backgrounds. We've got players who are really socially active trying to promote peace and understanding and these are all ideals, obviously that Dr. King felt so strongly about."