“All your life you are told the things you cannot do. All your life they will say you’re not good enough or strong enough or talented enough. They will say you’re the wrong height or the wrong weight or the wrong type to play this or be this or achieve this. They will tell you no. A thousand times no. until all the no’s become meaningless. All your life they will tell you no. Quite firmly and very quickly. And you will tell them yes”(3) -LeBron James
In my opinion, I believe LeBron James is the greatest basketball player of all time. LeBron is the greatest because of the affect LeBron has on the league and his team, the amount of starpower he had go up against while still carrying his team to the Finals yearly, the major accolades of James’s career up to this point, and how as he gets older, somehow LeBron continues to get better and better.
The Workload and Effect of LeBron
Because LeBron is so great, teams run their plays around him because that is what they need to do to win. In the 2009-2010 season, the Cavaliers went 61-21 in the regular season with LeBron, which was the best in the NBA. After that season, James left to go to the Miami Heat. In the very next season without LeBron, the Cavs went 19-63. This was the second worst record in the entire league. This all happened because LeBron was so valuable to that team. They went from the top to the bottom in a two year span. More recently, LeBron pulled his groin on the Christmas day game against the Golden State Warriors. The Lakers were 20-14 with LeBron before the injury and third in the western conference standings. The team with him before the injury went 6-11 over the 17 games he missed(1). They were tenth in the western conference when he came back. That is a seven spot drop over twenty one games because they lost one player, LeBron James. The King is so valuable to all of his teams in a way that no one ever has been before.
LeBron vs. the Warriors
In addition to this, LeBron has faced much tougher competition and forced other teams to create superteams just to make sure that he does not win. A perfect example would be the Golden State Warriors. In 2015, it was the first time the Cavs and Warriors squared off in the NBA Finals. At the time, the Warriors had three all stars. They were Klay Thompson, Steph Curry, and Draymond Green and they are not just typical all stars. Steph Curry is the greatest shooter to ever pick up a basketball and Klay Thompson is right behind him. The Cavaliers had two all stars in Lebron and Kyrie Irving. The Warriors won the series 4-2. LeBron averaged just about thirty-six points per game in this series with a game high of forty-four points(1).
Round II
In the next year, the same teams faced off again. LeBron again dominated the rest of eastern conference to make it to the Finals. The Warriors again had the same three all stars and the Cavaliers had the same two. This was also not just any team to make it to the Finals. The Warriors were the best team in regular season history with a record of 73-9. The Cavs were down 3-1 at one point in the series. A team has never came back from down 3-1 in a series until now. LeBron carried the Cavs all the way back from three games to win the NBA Finals. LeBron averaged twenty-nine points with nine assists and eleven rebounds(1). LeBron had two games in this series where he scored forty-one points(1).
Round III
The teams faced off for a third time in a row but this time the Warriors had four all stars. They added arguably the best scorer and the second best player in the world, Kevin Durant. This shows the affect LeBron had on that team. He took down three all stars which is already a huge mountain to climb over, and now the Warriors were forced to add the second best player in the world just to take down one player(2). Not only did Lebron have another all star to go against, he lost the only other one on his team. Kyrie Irving left to go to the Boston Celtics. This would be incredible for the Cavs to even make it to the Finals as a four seed going into the playoffs. Sure enough, LeBron got it done. LeBron and the Cavaliers faced off against the Warriors for the third time in a row and Lebrons eighth straight Finals appearance. This is also something no other player has ever done. The Cavs lost 4-1 in the series despite LeBron averaging thirty-four points per game. LeBron again had a game high of forty-one points in that series(1).
Other Championships
The Warriors have not been the only team in LeBron’s path to a championship. LeBron has won a total of three championships, and two were when he was in Miami with the Heat. In 2012, LeBron took on the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals. The Heat ended up winning in a five game series. LeBron lead the way with averaging twenty-eight points, ten rebounds, and seven assists per game. The very next year, the Miami Heat beat the San Antonio Spurs in a 7 game series. LeBron averaged twenty-five points per game with ten rebounds and seven assists(1).
Playoff LeBron
Throughout the playoffs every year, the league seems to see a different kind of animal in LeBron James. He single handedly takes over playoff games and playoff series just by himself. No one can count out whatever team LeBron is on in any playoff series. Over the course of LeBron’s career, he has had twenty-six playoff games where he has scored over forty points. This stat by itself is mind boggling. LeBron has had one playoff game where he has scored over fifty points. It was against the Golden State Warriors and he finished with fifty-one points. LeBron also holds several playoff records. LeBron is currently leading in total playoff points of anyone in NBA history with six thousand nine hundred and eleven. In addition, James is third in all time playoff assists with one thousand six hundred and eighty seven. LeBron also has played the most playoff minutes out of everyone in NBA history with ten thousand and forty nine. Bron is number one in free throws made with one thousand six hundred and twenty seven. Not only does he lead in all these categories, LeBron leads in steals as well with four hundred nineteen in his postseason career(1). In just about every other category, LeBron ranks top five in that statistic. With LeBron leading in all these categories and in the games where it counts the most, how can anyone else be better than the King?
Accolades
It would not be right to talk about how great King James is without mentioning all of his accolades in his NBA career. Starting early in his career, LeBron was named the Rookie of the Year for the 2003 season and was also on the 2003-2004 all rookie team. From there, LeBron lead the league in the 2007-2008 season and therefore, he was crowned scoring champion for that year. LeBron has not just been an offensive juggernaut in his entire career. He also causes havoc on the defensive end. Bron has been selected to six All-Defensive teams in his career so far. The way he can do it on both end of the floor at that level is something very few players are capable of. For the fifteen seasons he has been in the league, LeBron has been selected to every all star team he could be selected to. In those 15 games, Bron has been crowned the MVP three times. Also, out of his fifteen seasons, he has been on 14 All-NBA teams(1). LeBron can certainly break the all time record of 15 times selected to an All-NBA team by the end of his career. This is just another record The King will break.
The Real MVP
LeBron brought home his first MVP award in the 2008-2009 season while he was with the Cleveland Cavaliers. In his MVP season, James averaged twenty eight points per game with seven rebounds and seven assists. In the very next season, he won it again with the Cavaliers. In that showing, King James averaged just about thirty points with seven rebounds and eight assists. In the 2010-2011 season, LeBron won his third MVP and it was with the Miami Heat this go around. LeBron averaged twenty seven points per game with eight rebounds and six assists. In the very next season, he had won MVP in back to back seasons for the second time in his career. Bron averaged just about twenty seven points per game with eight rebounds and seven assists. This was his fourth MVP award in just five years. Although LeBron has won four times, he can debatably win the award every single year. King James has finished top five in the MVP race for thirteen straight years which is the longest streak out of anyone in NBA history(1).
Age is Just a Number
As LeBron keeps getting older and older, he somehow keeps getting better and better(2). LeBron has never averaged under twenty points in year in his career. From the get go, LeBron has been a force in the NBA. A player’s prime is typically from around twenty four or twenty five years old until around twenty nine or thirty. LeBron has been in his prime for what it seems like his whole career up to this point. He has been the best player on his team since his rookie year in 2003 and the best player in the league for over a decade. Forbes states;
No one in the 15th season of their careers, at age 33, has accomplished what LeBron has done at such a consistent, dominating and efficient rate. He has averaged the most rebounds and assists of his career this season. Like a fine wine, he has only gotten better with age, with no signs of slowing down. He started and played in all 82 regular-season games and 18 playoff games, playing the most minutes in the NBA. This past Sunday against the Boston Celtics, James played 48 minutes in his 100th game of the 2017-18 season, posting a magnificent 35-15-9 performance, breaking the hearts of Boston fans and silencing his critics in Game 7 at TD Garden(3).
This shows just how in shape and dominant LeBron is even at 34 years old. There is also no signs of James slowing down.
Conclusion
LeBron James is the best basketball player in NBA history. James attracts arguably the most attention a player ever has, he is the definition of a champion, he single handedly forces other teams to have to create superteams, and age is no factor for LeBron. As time goes on, LeBron gets better. Like LeBron has said in the past, “Ask me to play, I’ll play, ask me to shoot, I’ll shoot. Ask me to pass, I’ll pass, Ask me to steal, block out, sacrifice, lead, dominate, anything. But it’s not just what you ask of me. It’s what I ask of myself”(3). With all of these facts, it seems obvious that LeBron has achieved G.O.A.T. status.
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