I absolutely love watching Lebron James. I refuse to pass up any opportunity to watch him play because in my mind Lebron James is the most amazing athlete of all time.
Lebron James is 6'8" and weighs 260 pounds. Take a second and just think about that. (Keep thinking about...keep thinking...okay.) Lebron James is absolutely massive. Just to help you comprehend how large he is, I have found a few comparable bodies:
- Justin Tuck - DE, New York Giants - 6'9", 275 pounds
- Julius Peppers - DE, Chicago Bears - 6'7", 283 pounds
- David Lee - PF, New York Knicks - 6'9", 250 pounds
- Elton Brand - PF, Philadelphia 76ers - 6'9", 254 pounds
- Zach Randolph - PF, Memphis Grizzlies - 6'9", 260 pounds
- Karl Malone - PF, Utah Jazz - 6'9", 256 pounds
There has never been a physical specimen like Lebron James before. He is the size of an NBA power forward, but he has the quickness and agility of a point guard. The things he does on the floor are absolutely unbelievable and at times unthinkable. After watching him night in and night out, I can't help but think that Lebron might have become the NBA's best player.
Before they even finished reading that sentence, I could hear every Lebron hater in the world say: "Lebron is a stat stuffer. Lebron is overrated and overhyped by the media. Where are his rings?"
I have heard all of these arguments before and they are all valid. When it comes down to deciding the best player in the NBA, there are really only two choices: Lebron and Kobe. I'm not going to pretend to like Kobe. I have never really liked him, but I have always respected what he can do. Kobe is undoubtedly the best closer in the game and no one in the league is better than him at creating their own shot. Though he does several things well, at this point, I believe Lebron has surpassed Kobe as the NBA's best player.
It has been a long time since we have seen a player put up numbers like Lebron James. As of March 6, Lebron is averaging 30 points per game (1st in the NBA), 8.5 assists per game (6th), and 7.2 rebounds per game. Lebron is on pace to become the first player of all time to win the NBA Player of the Month award every single month of the season. These stats become even more impressive when you take a look at the team Cleveland GM Danny Ferry has assembled in Cleveland.
Throughout Lebron's career, Cleveland has paired him with Zydrunas Ilgauskas at center. I am adamantly against calling Ilgauskas a center. I don't remember the last time I saw Big Z make a post move, but I do however remember seeing Big Z standing in the corner looking for an open three on nearly every Cavaliers' offensive possession in the last 5 years.
To help remedy this problem, the Cavaliers brought in Shaquille O'Neal this offseason. The Shaq that came to Cleveland was a shell of his former self. He was no longer the top center in the league. He was no longer the force that played 38 minutes a game, while averaging 28 ppg and 12 rpg during the 2000-2002 seasons when he helped Kobe obtain three of his four titles. In Cleveland, Shaq has struggled to find a flow and Cleveland has actually been more efficient without Shaq in their lineup.
Through his first six season's in Cleveland, along with the lack of a true post presence, Lebron has also been forced to deal with poor point guard play. Lebron was forced to play with the likes of Eric Snow, Alvin Williams, and Jeff McGinnis. There was a lot of attention paid to the Cavs bringing "All-Star" point guard Mo Williams two years ago, but this move seemed relatively unimpressive to me. (As a bucks fan, I know Williams all too well.)
Mo Williams is a shoot-first point guard, who is most effective when he can dominate the ball and shoot off the dribble, but is not a great spot-up shooter. None of these attributes fit well with Lebron's game. Honestly, there are probably about ten or more point guards I would rather have. (Point guards I would rather have (in no particular order): Nash, Williams, Paul, Rondo, Rose, Kidd, Westbrook, Harris, B. Davis, Billups, Brooks)
I'm not even going to discuss the wing players and power forwards Lebron was forced to play with. When J.J. Hickson, Ricky Davis, and Joe Smith are three names that would be brought up in the discussion of Lebron's best running mate at these positions, there is clearly something wrong.
On the other hand, Kobe has had the pleasure of playing with some of the best team's of the last ten years. As I already mentioned, Kobe won his first three titles with the help of Shaq who was argubably the most dominating low post player of all time. Last year, when Kobe won his fourth title, his Lakers team was likely the most talented team in the league. Kobe was once again able to play with a top five center (Pau Gasol) and one of the most dynamic forwards in the league (Lamar Odom) en route to his fourth NBA championship ring.
Even though I'm sure I haven't convinced any of you Lebron haters to think any differently, I hope you can at least step back and appreciate what Lebron does on a nightly basis. Instead of nitpicking and being completely critical of everything Lebron does, please just take some time to watch the show he puts on night in and night out.
Because some day, your kid or grandkid will ask you if you got to watch Lebron James play basketball and hopefully you will be able to say with a smile, "Yes, I was a witness..."
No comments:
Post a Comment