Sir Charles is and will ALWAYS be correct. Lebron doesn't and want to compete

[The Oldtimer]

So if he went out west to say the spurs or rockets, you wouldn't bitch?

Good point, but I don't see any team giving Lebron a long term (5 year or more) contract at 23 mil a year to come out West. He will be 33 this December and maybe has 3/4 real good years left. JMHO.

 

[The Oldtimer]

I agree with much of what you said, BUT:

KD is the most efficient, and arguably the best scorer in the NBA. Russell Westbrook is really good, but he is also a ball hog. KD needed to get away from him for his own reasons and it really is not any different from what LeBron did when he went to Miami.

I have to disagree about Westbrook being a ball hog. Westbrook is currently the third best assist leader in the NBA, he has 10.1 assist per game. A player doesn't have as many triple-doubles as Westbrook has, without being in the top of the APG list.

 

[trojanfan12]

I have to disagree about Westbrook being a ball hog. Westbrook is currently the third best assist leader in the NBA, he has 10.1 assist per game. A player doesn't have as many triple-doubles as Westbrook has, without being in the top of the APG list.

I think he was referring to when KD was in OKC.

Plus, it's not so much that Westbrook was a ballhog as much as it was when he did it. He would try to take over late and win games by himself.

This year, he's definitely not being a ballhog. If he'd have played more like this when KD was there, he might still be there,

 

[msgkings322]

My question is why do some people believe that approval is needed. It seems like to me that the Lebron kids are on a trek and feel the need to get everyone to agree with them on their version of Lebron's so called greatness. Lebron is a good player and one of the top players in the NBA as of right now though.

Really over estimating the guy, aren't you?

 

[trojanfan12]

Really over estimating the guy, aren't you?

TLF is not easily impressed.

 

[True Lakers Fan]

Really over estimating the guy, aren't you?

I don't think so.

 

[True Lakers Fan]

TLF is not easily impressed.

The truth is that I think Kobe had a better ball IQ then LeBron who has enjoyed a healthier and more athletic body due to no injuries.

 

[msgkings322]

I don't think so.

Are you sure he's a good player though? You really claim he's one of the best in the NBA right now?

 

[tlance]

I think he was referring to when KD was in OKC.

Plus, it's not so much that Westbrook was a ballhog as much as it was when he did it. He would try to take over late and win games by himself.

This year, he's definitely not being a ballhog. If he'd have played more like this when KD was there, he might still be there,

Westbrook is the definition of a ball hog. Yes, he gets assists, but he always had the ball in his hands. Being a ball hog does not mean you shoot every time. The way Russ is playing this year may be necessary for the Thunder, but it also completely validates KD's decision. Russ is all about Russ.

KD is on record talking about how the ball did not move in OKC and how he is happy to be playing in GS where guys play the right way.

 

[tlance]

Good point, but I don't see any team giving Lebron a long term (5 year or more) contract at 23 mil a year to come out West. He will be 33 this December and maybe has 3/4 real good years left. JMHO.

Nonsense.

LeBron is the best player in the league. EVERY team in the NBA would happily offer a max deal of 30 million for 5 years knowing that he might not be worth it at the tail end, because he instantly transforms just about any team into a contender for the next 2-3.

LeBron would not consider most teams, but every GM in the league would gladly pay LeBron.

 

[tlance]

Still doesn't answer my question as to what that video has to do with the topic?

Because there is zero truth to the comment.

When he left Cleveland the first time, he was never even linked to WCF teams. Not because he was scared, but because the pieces did not fit for a move West that made sense. When he left Miami, it was to return to Cleveland. Like someone else mentioned, their were West options that may have had an easier path to a ring at the time, but LeBron chose to return home.

People who say he is scared to play in the West are literally just trying to invent new ways to criticize LeBron because others have been played out. It is a foolish claim.

 

[larryjohn]

5 rings > 3 rings, so not any list

Bill Russell >>> MJ.

 

[The Oldtimer]

Nonsense.

LeBron is the best player in the league. EVERY team in the NBA would happily offer a max deal of 30 million for 5 years knowing that he might not be worth it at the tail end, because he instantly transforms just about any team into a contender for the next 2-3.

LeBron would not consider most teams, but every GM in the league would gladly pay LeBron.

Okay fair enough. Maybe I'm just too damn cheap, because I wouldn't paid LeBron (33 in December) 30 million for 5 years.

 

[larryjohn]

Okay fair enough. Maybe I'm just too damn cheap, because I wouldn't paid LeBron (33 in December) 30 million for 5 years.

I have a feeling Magic would do that in a second.

 

[The Oldtimer]

Bill Russell >>> MJ.

Yep!!!

 

[The Oldtimer]

I have a feeling Magic would do that in a second.

Could be, but IMO it would be a big mistake.

 

[flyerhawk]

My question is why do some people believe that approval is needed. It seems like to me that the Lebron kids are on a trek and feel the need to get everyone to agree with them on their version of Lebron's so called greatness. Lebron is a good player and one of the top players in the NBA as of right now though.

Saying that Lebron is a "good" player is pretty funny.

 

[Wamu]

Bill Russell >>> MJ.

Robert Horry (7 rings) >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> MJ (only 6)

 

[trojanfan12]

Westbrook is the definition of a ball hog. Yes, he gets assists, but he always had the ball in his hands. Being a ball hog does not mean you shoot every time. The way Russ is playing this year may be necessary for the Thunder, but it also completely validates KD's decision. Russ is all about Russ.

KD is on record talking about how the ball did not move in OKC and how he is happy to be playing in GS where guys play the right way.

I think it kind of depends on how the offense is set up though. With the Showtime Lakers, Magic always had the ball in his hands, but no one calls him a ball hog. Same with Steve Nash and the Suns among others Their jobs were to get the ball to the guy with the best chance to score.

In order to get a lot of assists, just like getting a lot of points, that player has to have the ball in his hands a lot.

Plus, it's not as if KD wasn't getting a lot of shots when he played with Westbrook. I always saw it as more of, late in the game, Westbrook would try to take over and would forget (maybe intentionally) that he had another great player to help carry the load. You could really see KD's frustration at times.

I do agree though that KD made the right decision. Because I don't think he and Westbrook were ever going to get it figured out because Westbrook wasn't going to give up hero ball and KD wasn't going to demand the ball.

Hopefully, losing KD and having to do everything himself just to secure a low playoff seed and have no shot at even reaching the finals, let alone win a title, will teach Westbrook the same lesson that losing Shaq ultimately taught Kobe. One guy can't win it all by himself.

 

[trojanfan12]

Okay fair enough. Maybe I'm just too damn cheap, because I wouldn't paid LeBron (33 in December) 30 million for 5 years.

Gotta agree with @tlance on this one. Lebron is 32, assuming he has no significant injuries, Lebron probably has a good 3 years left playing at the same or very close to the same level he's at right now. Then, unless Father Time decides to really make him pay for playing at really high level until he's 35, he probably has another 2-3 years as a solid contributor on a contending team.

On top of that, not unlike Kobe in his final years, Lebron will also continue to be a huge draw in his final seasons. When you combine the opportunity to contend for a title with the money to be made just because he's on the team, Lebron would be worth every penny of a 5 year max deal.

I don't even like Lebron and if I found out the Lakers had a chance to sign him and didn't...I'd be pissed.