Lebron James: Overrated?

[Jay Smooth 00]

It URGES me that Lebron "Flocka" James has 2 mvp's but 0 NBA Championship. Many of you will say, "well he doese'nt have a team" but look he did. Don't you think we're overrating Lebron "Waka" James? comments

[oklahoma19]

yes overrated.. no killer instict to win.. read this from writer Bill Simmons..

Me Paraphrasing..

all the greats have a center desire.. for guys like MJ it was winning.. at all costs.. no matter what..
for Kobe its to prove his greatness.. if he loses because he passed to his teammates all game then it proves hes great cuz they cant win without him..

for lebron.. its to "wow" the fans.. to have a moment every game that shocks everyone... but its not to win...


My Opinion now:

he quit in the final game against Boston.. his whole team did.. and if i was a Cavs fan Id be embarrased of what that was on the court.. lack of heart.. lack of toughness... lack of pride.. lack of being a man basically..

thats my opinion...

[OSUFan_88]

This thread will end very well.

[HMcCoy]

Lebron isn't overrated on the court, period.

I definitley think his overconfidence is a real weakness though, and the entire decade long LeBron James hype train has had a seriously negative impact on his off the court decision-making, which has in turn hurt his chances of winning it all.

Everyone likes to think their armchair analysis is meaningful, but it really means exactly dick. History only remembers winners and losers, not so much the how's and why's...and while we all think our masterful hindsight and flawless knowledge of X's and O's dictate what goes on, the reality is that your best player can shoot < 40% from the field and still win a Finals MVP. Which one of us predicted that, lol? Championships are won and loss on one or two bounces here and there...a shot or two going in or rimming out.

Lebron has to resolve some of his trust issues (trusting an offensive system in particular) if he wants to get on the winning side. More than that, he just needs to have some of those damn bounces go his way...and a few more clutch type performers like the Fishers and Horrys of the world wouldn't hurt that one bit.

[Flightwhite24]

I've always felt he does not have the killer instinct that the Birds, Jordans, Magic, Bryants have.

LBJ is not very mature as far as I'm concerned. I was dumbfounded seeing LBJ and his teammates celebrating/dancing "DURING"/after "EVERY GAME" that they jumped out to a lead or beat the crap out of a team. Nothing wrong with feeling good about a win but act like you have been there before. Oh Snap!!! they haven't been there before but by the way they acted on the bench you would have thought LBJ and crew were the Defending World Champs.

LBJ has wonderful talent but I do think he is overrated.

[Bornindamecca]

Lebron isn't overrated in one sense. With so much hype around him, it's easy to find hyperbole that doesn't stick, but by the time he was eliminated from the playoffs and Kobe had his knee drained, people had jumped ship and started calling Kobe the best player in the game.

Whether or not that's true, it indicates that Lebron is not the consensus best player in the game. Since he is at least the 2nd best player in the game by any measure, he's not overrated.

That having been said, there is one aspect of his game that is misinterpreted, if not overrated. The prevailing thought is that he makes his teammates better. This isn't true. Maybe one day he will, but right now I don't think there is a single player on his roster that is a better player than they were before they put on the same uniform as Lebron James. Lebron is a great passer. Being a great passer doesn't automatically make your teammates better. Regularly putting guys in the best position to use their specific skills is what makes them better, along with the mental aspect of demanding greatness or setting an example that weaker minded or passive players will follow.

If you look at the production of his teammates, not only do their numbers either equal or fall short of what they've done in the past, but their on-court performance tends to be marginalized, because Lebron has to start his offense so early in the shot clock. People don't get touches or the chance to initiate, and so they have less responsibility(as opposed to specific responsibility). In any situation, less responsibility lessens accountability, potential and initiative.

Lebron will probably learn to occasionally hand the keys over to his teammates to empower them, rather than taking the mentality of spoon feeding them. Many guys don't flourish on a steady diet of spoon feeding, and thusly don't have the faculties to "step up" when the stakes are raised(playoffs).

[oklahoma19]

still doesnt answer his quitting against Boston this year.. NOT A COMPETITOR...
maybe this will wake him up like losing the State championship his Jr year of high school...

[DakkoN]

Quote: Originally Posted by oklahoma19

still doesnt answer his quitting against Boston this year.. NOT A COMPETITOR... maybe this will wake him up like losing the State championship his Jr year of high school...

For every ignorant post like this, there's something to just prove you completely wrong.

I'll see your Boston series and raise you:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3drbh3cQM5Q