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In His Own Words: If J.R. Smith Was an Animal, He'd Be a Dolphin

Check out the Cavs' guard's deep explanation.

Back in August during an appearance on the Open Run podcastLeBron James said if J.R. Smith was an animal, he'd be a dolphin.

Well, it turns out that Smith couldn't agree more with the NBA Finals MVP and his Cleveland Cavaliers' teammate.

In The New Yorker's recent feature story about him — "The Misunderstanding of J.R. Smith" — the veteran shooting guard takes a deeper dive into the comparison, breaking down his similar personality traits to the aquatic animal.

"You know the animal question?" Smith told the magazine. "The dolphin is my favorite animal. It’s graceful. When it jumps out of the water, it’s one of the most peaceful things you can see. Especially when the sun is hitting off the water. There’s something just so calm and peaceful about it. At the same time, if it goes down, a dolphin is like, 'OK, let’s go.' I’m a dolphin. That’s all people need to know."

His comparison isn't too far fetched from why King James made the comparison two months ago.

"J.R. is like a dolphin," James said at the time. "You know why? I watch a lot of these…what is it called, Open Water? Or National Geographic. And dolphins, like, they’re really killers. Sharks are afraid of them. But they gotta have a group around them to become the best of their ability… And incredibly smart."

To that latter part, Smith averaged 11.5 points per game this postseason as an integral piece to the Cavs' championship squad.

Still, the 31-year-old shooting guard has yet to sign an extension with the Cavs — something King James has been lobbying for all offseason and into this preseason.

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