[RubberMallet]

he needs to score 45 points a game to be taken seriously folks.

[Purple Haize]

he needs to score 45 points a game to be taken seriously folks.

No. But play with that type of focus and intensity. It did stick up that the talking heads were marveling at the fact that 14 of his basket took place with him never passing the ball. He obviously is not going to have that type shooting nite every nite but he can have that focus and intensity.
I like him getting the ball in the mid and high post. I think that he is more effective offensively then dribbling around the perimeter where he often looks lost.

[thepostman]

he needs to score 45 points a game to be taken seriously folks.

Yes, that is exactly what I meant.

[RubberMallet]

if he scores 36 but smiles half the time he's a schmoe....no we get it.

[Purple Haize]

You're right. There are only two options

[RubberMallet]

lol too easy

the guy has been putting up crap ton of points and outplaying everyone in the playoffs....but NOW he cares. i see.

[Purple Haize]

lol too easy

the guy has been putting up crap ton of points and outplaying everyone in the playoffs....but NOW he cares. i see.

He checked out his final game with the Cavs...so yeah he has a history of not giving a crap.

[RubberMallet]

lol too easy

the guy has been putting up crap ton of points and outplaying everyone in the playoffs....but NOW he cares. i see.

He checked out his final game with the Cavs...so yeah he has a history of not giving a crap.

lol no idea what you are talking about as usual. a triple double was his final game as a cavalier if i remember correctly...

[Purple Haize]

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/Bost ... -in-Game-5

And this is a kind article. This was the game that really soured me on LeBron

[NotAJerry]

lol too easy

the guy has been putting up crap ton of points and outplaying everyone in the playoffs....but NOW he cares. i see.

Have you missed every significant 4th quarter he's ever played? He's the worst superstar caliber player in the clutch. Just last year he spent his 4th quarters standing around and not even trying to be involved against Dallas in the finals. He's the epitome of a front runner and last night simply reinforced that. Now, if he comes out and plays like he gives a crap in several consecutive playoff games, including not disappearing in the 4th quarter, then he'll be able to get past the valid criticism he gets.

[NotAJerry]

lol too easy

the guy has been putting up crap ton of points and outplaying everyone in the playoffs....but NOW he cares. i see.

He checked out his final game with the Cavs...so yeah he has a history of not giving a crap.

lol no idea what you are talking about as usual. a triple double was his final game as a cavalier if i remember correctly...

And 9 turnovers and his points were on 8-21 shooting that night. He shot under 40% the final 3 games of that series and had games with 7 and 9 turnovers among those 3. There's such a thing as empty numbers when you're losing by double digits.

[thepostman]

lol too easy

the guy has been putting up crap ton of points and outplaying everyone in the playoffs....but NOW he cares. i see.

He is one of the most talented players in the league, if not the most talented, his problem has always been not having that killer instinct when it really matters.

You obviously think Lebron is amazing and there will be no changing your mind, and my mind won't be changed until he wins the big one. No point in really talking about it anymore

[RubberMallet]

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/Bost ... -in-Game-5

And this is a kind article. This was the game that really soured me on LeBron

game 5 is where he sucked it up. big time. so it was game 5 not his "last" game....ok got it. when you are dragging a complete turd with you your entire career, i tend to give a guy a pass a night or two.

[RubberMallet]

lol too easy

the guy has been putting up crap ton of points and outplaying everyone in the playoffs....but NOW he cares. i see.

Have you missed every significant 4th quarter he's ever played? He's the worst superstar caliber player in the clutch. Just last year he spent his 4th quarters standing around and not even trying to be involved against Dallas in the finals. He's the epitome of a front runner and last night simply reinforced that. Now, if he comes out and plays like he gives a crap in several consecutive playoff games, including not disappearing in the 4th quarter, then he'll be able to get past the valid criticism he gets.

wrong. again.

4th quarter scoring.

1. Lebron James – 8.5 PPG
2. Tony Parker – 8.0 PPG
3. Dirk Nowitzki – 8.0 PPG
4. Kevin Durant – 7.5 PPG
5. Carmelo Anthony – 7.4 PPG
6. James Harden – 7.3 PPG
7. Kevin Garnett – 6.4 PPG
8. Kobe Bryant – 6.1 PPG
9. Rudy Gay – 5.6 PPG
10. Paul Pierce – 5.3 PPG

in the clutch the last 4 years? per 48 min avg?

hes in the top 4 EVERY YEAR.

[RubberMallet]

[

He checked out his final game with the Cavs...so yeah he has a history of not giving a crap.

lol no idea what you are talking about as usual. a triple double was his final game as a cavalier if i remember correctly...

And 9 turnovers and his points were on 8-21 shooting that night. He shot under 40% the final 3 games of that series and had games with 7 and 9 turnovers among those 3. There's such a thing as empty numbers when you're losing by double digits.

psssst. guys that get the ball run through them ever possession will at times have plenty of turnover. especially when their team is void of distinguishable talent outside 1 player. its hard to discount a triple double as "empty". thats hilarious.

[RubberMallet]

lol too easy

the guy has been putting up crap ton of points and outplaying everyone in the playoffs....but NOW he cares. i see.

He is one of the most talented players in the league, if not the most talented, his problem has always been not having that killer instinct when it really matters.

You obviously think Lebron is amazing and there will be no changing your mind, and my mind won't be changed until he wins the big one. No point in really talking about it anymore

hahahah.. i actually particularly don't mind him either way. don't let my objective reasoning be mistaken for love in the same way I can easily point to your hatred of the man in all your talking head parroted nonsense.

[Purple Haize]

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/Bost ... -in-Game-5

And this is a kind article. This was the game that really soured me on LeBron

game 5 is where he sucked it up. big time. so it was game 5 not his "last" game....ok got it. when you are dragging a complete turd with you your entire career, i tend to give a guy a pass a night or two.

I was off the one game, but the point is valid. His reaction after the next game spoke volumes. He had already checked out in game 5 and left the team and city hanging. That is not what someone who is supposed to be the greatest of all time does. There are too many games he just doesn't engage. You saw it in Cleveland, you saw it last year in the Finals and you've seen it this year in the ECF. Great players don't have that type of pattern, especially in big games
As for dragging a bad team around as a reason to quit, Jordan never did that, Magic never did that ( post Kareem and Worthy the Lakers weren't good). When McHal and Parrish were breaking down Bird never checked out. LeBron is VERY good and I'd take him on my team,but I would not want him to be the leader of my team. I would want him to have the ball for the first 45 minutes of the game but not the last 3. And I would make sure my team was good enough to make up for the nights he checks out.
The final thought on LeBron is his work ethic. Is he a quantitatively better player now then 2 or 3 years ago? Great players continue to master their ' go to skill ' they have AND try to add something every year. What is his 'go to skill'? Shooting? Ball handling? Posting up? IMO, he still relays more on his athletic ability then hard work. Which is why I still love D Wade

[RubberMallet]

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/Bost ... -in-Game-5

And this is a kind article. This was the game that really soured me on LeBron

game 5 is where he sucked it up. big time. so it was game 5 not his "last" game....ok got it. when you are dragging a complete turd with you your entire career, i tend to give a guy a pass a night or two.

I was off the one game, but the point is valid. His reaction after the next game spoke volumes. He had already checked out in game 5 and left the team and city hanging. That is not what someone who is supposed to be the greatest of all time does. There are too many games he just doesn't engage. You saw it in Cleveland, you saw it last year in the Finals and you've seen it this year in the ECF. Great players don't have that type of pattern, especially in big games
As for dragging a bad team around as a reason to quit, Jordan never did that, Magic never did that ( post Kareem and Worthy the Lakers weren't good). When McHal and Parrish were breaking down Bird never checked out. LeBron is VERY good and I'd take him on my team,but I would not want him to be the leader of my team. I would want him to have the ball for the first 45 minutes of the game but not the last 3. And I would make sure my team was good enough to make up for the nights he checks out.
The final thought on LeBron is his work ethic. Is he a quantitatively better player now then 2 or 3 years ago? Great players continue to master their ' go to skill ' they have AND try to add something every year. What is his 'go to skill'? Shooting? Ball handling? Posting up? IMO, he still relays more on his athletic ability then hard work. Which is why I still love D Wade

i really don't disagree with most of this. this is gonna sound really stupid but it seems he doesn't mind losing. i don't think he'll be even one of the top 10 players ever when all is said and done. he's just getting into his prime mentally now. remember we saw a kid for 4 of 5 years out of highschool. jordan didn't have this early on, magic or bird didn't either. bird didn't take over until the 84-85 as THE man.

thats all. i hate lebron as a bulls fan. reading some of the stories of him out on the town he seems like kind of a d-----bag. thats what happens when you give a poor kid lots of dough.

on your last point. lebron 2-3 years ago was marginal defensively and couldn't post up worth crap. those are things of the past sir. so yeah, aspects of his game have gotten alot better if you are watching. but you still think he's comparable to scottie pippen so i'm not sure you are.

[lynchburgwildcats]

lol too easy

the guy has been putting up crap ton of points and outplaying everyone in the playoffs....but NOW he cares. i see.

He is one of the most talented players in the league, if not the most talented, his problem has always been not having that killer instinct when it really matters.

You obviously think Lebron is amazing and there will be no changing your mind, and my mind won't be changed until he wins the big one. No point in really talking about it anymore

Do you think Karl Malone was never a great player?

[Purple Haize]

I don't understand why comparing him to Pippen is a bad thing. If he were compared in that light I think he would be appreciated a lot more. Their games are very similar. I think Pippen was a better defender but overall I think James is a little better.
It does seem we agree on the general premise though. I do think you are right he doesn't care if he wins or loses and seems to feel a Championship will just fall in his lap. I don't think his post games any better now then last year, they are just running more sets for it this year. Which is smart. Defensively he is a joke I have no idea how he got on the team let alone was the leading vote getter. His defense in the playoffs has been atrocious, which is average by NBA standards . But I'm obviously in the minority on that and can live with it.

[NotAJerry]

lol too easy

the guy has been putting up crap ton of points and outplaying everyone in the playoffs....but NOW he cares. i see.

Have you missed every significant 4th quarter he's ever played? He's the worst superstar caliber player in the clutch. Just last year he spent his 4th quarters standing around and not even trying to be involved against Dallas in the finals. He's the epitome of a front runner and last night simply reinforced that. Now, if he comes out and plays like he gives a crap in several consecutive playoff games, including not disappearing in the 4th quarter, then he'll be able to get past the valid criticism he gets.

wrong. again.

4th quarter scoring.

1. Lebron James – 8.5 PPG
2. Tony Parker – 8.0 PPG
3. Dirk Nowitzki – 8.0 PPG
4. Kevin Durant – 7.5 PPG
5. Carmelo Anthony – 7.4 PPG
6. James Harden – 7.3 PPG
7. Kevin Garnett – 6.4 PPG
8. Kobe Bryant – 6.1 PPG
9. Rudy Gay – 5.6 PPG
10. Paul Pierce – 5.3 PPG

in the clutch the last 4 years? per 48 min avg?

hes in the top 4 EVERY YEAR.

Okay, Stephen A. Smith, how is random 4th quarter scoring relevant to SIGNIFICANT (close, late, playoff) 4th quarter scoring?

I could lead the league in 4th quarter scoring when my team is up by 20 and I'm jacking up whatever shot I want because we're on cruise control. Go back to the Dallas series last year and watch the film of him standing around, not even trying to contribute on offense at all. He's an absolute joke when the game is on the line and he's the best player in the world when his team is blowing their opponent out. He's the best frontrunner in the NBA and possibly the worst "clutch" star that has ever played.

[NotAJerry]

psssst. guys that get the ball run through them ever possession will at times have plenty of turnover. especially when their team is void of distinguishable talent outside 1 player. its hard to discount a triple double as "empty". thats hilarious.

Shooting under 40%, and having more turnovers than everyone else, makes it pretty easy to discount the scoring and assist part of the triple double. There are plenty of NBA players who can get 27 points on 21 shots. 10 assists to 9 turnovers is awful for a primary ballhandler.

[RubberMallet]

I don't understand why comparing him to Pippen is a bad thing. If he were compared in that light I think he would be appreciated a lot more. Their games are very similar. I think Pippen was a better defender but overall I think James is a little better.
It does seem we agree on the general premise though. I do think you are right he doesn't care if he wins or loses and seems to feel a Championship will just fall in his lap. I don't think his post games any better now then last year, they are just running more sets for it this year. Which is smart. Defensively he is a joke I have no idea how he got on the team let alone was the leading vote getter. His defense in the playoffs has been atrocious, which is average by NBA standards . But I'm obviously in the minority on that and can live with it.

because pippen while great was no where near the offensive juggernaut that james is. and james never used to post up. he can with ease now. and i cant' see what you are seeing defensively. you can barely get around him. and if you do, you still may be in trouble.

[RubberMallet]

psssst. guys that get the ball run through them ever possession will at times have plenty of turnover. especially when their team is void of distinguishable talent outside 1 player. its hard to discount a triple double as "empty". thats hilarious.

Shooting under 40%, and having more turnovers than everyone else, makes it pretty easy to discount the scoring and assist part of the triple double. There are plenty of NBA players who can get 27 points on 21 shots. 10 assists to 9 turnovers is awful for a primary ballhandler.

yet it happens to the best of them in the playoffs, in the regular season, whenever. sorry. you are running out of straws.

[RubberMallet]

Have you missed every significant 4th quarter he's ever played? He's the worst superstar caliber player in the clutch. Just last year he spent his 4th quarters standing around and not even trying to be involved against Dallas in the finals. He's the epitome of a front runner and last night simply reinforced that. Now, if he comes out and plays like he gives a crap in several consecutive playoff games, including not disappearing in the 4th quarter, then he'll be able to get past the valid criticism he gets.

wrong. again.

4th quarter scoring.

1. Lebron James – 8.5 PPG
2. Tony Parker – 8.0 PPG
3. Dirk Nowitzki – 8.0 PPG
4. Kevin Durant – 7.5 PPG
5. Carmelo Anthony – 7.4 PPG
6. James Harden – 7.3 PPG
7. Kevin Garnett – 6.4 PPG
8. Kobe Bryant – 6.1 PPG
9. Rudy Gay – 5.6 PPG
10. Paul Pierce – 5.3 PPG

in the clutch the last 4 years? per 48 min avg?

hes in the top 4 EVERY YEAR.

Okay, Stephen A. Smith, how is random 4th quarter scoring relevant to SIGNIFICANT (close, late, playoff) 4th quarter scoring?

I could lead the league in 4th quarter scoring when my team is up by 20 and I'm jacking up whatever shot I want because we're on cruise control. Go back to the Dallas series last year and watch the film of him standing around, not even trying to contribute on offense at all. He's an absolute joke when the game is on the line and he's the best player in the world when his team is blowing their opponent out. He's the best frontrunner in the NBA and possibly the worst "clutch" star that has ever played.

do you know what clutch even means?

last 5 minutes of game or overtime with the score being +/- 5. guess whos in the top 5 every year? playoffs and regular season?...guess.....yeah thats right james. so just like i uh posted in that post.

in the clutch the last 4 years? per 48 min avg?

hes in the top 4 EVERY YEAR.

you could lead the league in scoring in the 4th quarter? you could? i think we are done here when lunacy takes over.