lebron james' destiny

[Weiland]

i remembered last year,lebron james said he will fulfill his destiny on 2007..but what is he talkin about..he's my favorite player but hes not entertaining anymore..he still one of the best players in the league but hes definitely not by his standards..when i watch cleveland games,he just pass the ball w/o even attempting to get inside..i saw him drive and bump shaq and then the next possesion stops and just pass the ball while being guarded by jason kapono. its not that he's afraid to drive to the basket,he just looks lazy.and then his freethrow shooting is horrible,only LBJ and duncan has 60%
among the scoring leaders and duncan is a bigman so maybe that's an excuse..one game he's 5/13 from the line,then 7/13, 5/11,4/8.. then the game against miami when they lost by just three, shaqs ft is 4/7 while lebron' ft is 3/8... somebody from the cavaliers staff tell lebron to get back to assassin mode..

[maes]

He might just be fatigued.

I remember when Jordan & Pippen played for the Dream team, the Bulls didn't do very well for the 1st half of the next season.

[Matt]

i'll put it this way....if he plays like he's playing now, irrespective of stats, then he'll be just another T-Mac, VC type...except better. If he doesn't improve, then he'll never reach that Kobe, MJ group.

[Scotty]

I'm not really sure whats up with LeBron either.... As you said he seems a bit tired and lazy and want's to score from jump shots. I used to be a big fan, but im not any more, it's like he knows he's good and doesn't need to prove it anymore, but he still should be....

[volsey]

We had that "James the next VC" thread, saying exactly the same thing. Everyone said, oh 27, 7, 6 aint good enough for all you people with high expecations. And honestly those are great stats, but theres more than stats. I couldn't really see Lebron averaging much better numbers than he had last year, and he's not. But that's not what we're all talking about. He's lost that motivation, determination, during games. Last game I thought he started out slow, and then in the second half he came out playing like he did last year, got into a rythym and shot and scored well. Then he slowed down again and turned into the LeBron we've been seeing this year. He still has his great passing ability, and is still very unselfish(too unselfish, especially during the 4th Q), but he lacks the killer instinct he's been known to have later parts in the game.

[scrub]

I can give him some credit for putting up 27-6-6 so far. Nobody in recent years has put up those numbers or better except himself. However you have to realise he is fatigued after playing on the international scene over the summer and also he has a toe injury which he doesnt think will go away any time soon. But regardless of these problems he may be having he does seem to lack that killer instinct of Kobe and MJ which may prevent him from being the one of the all-time greats.

[---]

I think one of the reasons for that is his team absolutely sucks. Who can help him? He has an aging Zydrunas Ilguaskas, and always injured Larry Hughes, no point guard averaging over 5 APG, an average NBA power forward in Drew Gooden, a couple of bench role players in Pavlovic and Donyell, and a decent up and coming power forward in Varejao but to be honest I don't think he will ever be much, if any at all, better than a Drew Gooden type which as I said before is just average.

I think it is gonna be a slow process to build this team up because they don't really have a whole lot to offer in terms of a trade. Teams want good players and potentially good young players, but I think the only players teams would touch other than LBJ are Gooden, Varejao and maybe Pavlovic at this point.

Their top seven paid players (In order: Hughes, Ilgauskas, Gooden, Snow, James, Marshall, Jones) still have their contracts for at least another 2 seasons, with the two most expensive this season, Hughes and Ilgauskas, being locked up for another 3.

It doesn't look good for Cleveland right now.

[cyanide]

I made a thread on this earlier, but comments were more about him putting up great numbers and that we're expecting too much. Now we're seeing more of that lack of killer instinct, which is what I maintained before.

[Dro]

I think one of the reasons for that is his team absolutely sucks. Who can help him? He has an aging Zydrunas Ilguaskas, and always injured Larry Hughes, no point guard averaging over 5 APG, an average NBA power forward in Drew Gooden, a couple of bench role players in Pavlovic and Donyell, and a decent up and coming power forward in Varejao but to be honest I don't think he will ever be much, if any at all, better than a Drew Gooden type which as I said before is just average.

I think it is gonna be a slow process to build this team up because they don't really have a whole lot to offer in terms of a trade. Teams want good players and potentially good young players, but I think the only players teams would touch other than LBJ are Gooden, Varejao and maybe Pavlovic at this point.

Their top seven paid players (In order: Hughes, Ilgauskas, Gooden, Snow, James, Marshall, Jones) still have their contracts for at least another 2 seasons, with the two most expensive this season, Hughes and Ilgauskas, being locked up for another 3.

It doesn't look good for Cleveland right now.

And they won't be adding much young talent in the draft this year, because their first rounder belongs to....the Phoenix Suns

[---]

And even if they did have that pick, they desperately need a point guard before anything else. The 07 draft is pretty weak in terms of guards, but point guards are a different story. The top point guard is either Mustafa Shakur or Acie Law, and neither of them will solve Clevelands problems.

They need to make a move quickly, before they get any deeper.

[NBJ]

Daniel Gibson is the Cavaliers futue point guard. I think he started the last few games, and he has been doing really well. But we could still need a more talent on the point guard position. So in the draft, we should either go for a point guard or a center

[mvpshaq32]

Maybe it's because of his toe??

[volsey]

Maybe it's because of his toe??

No many people, including me have noticed this since mid november.

As for the Cavs team, I think Gibson is great fit. He's quick and athletic, and can nail the 3. He had quite afew big 3s in the Miami game that really gave a boost to the Cavs team. LeBron will have the ball most of the time(or should), and so I think a good shoot pg like Gibson fits well.

Gooden can rebound, and thats about. He can score well when motivated, but it doesn't look like he gets motivated much. LeBron just needs more help, hopefully he can pick up his game.

[Matt]

funny how Damon Jones proclaims himself the best shooter in the world and he cant make a shot

[Andrew]

I made a thread on this earlier, but comments were more about him putting up great numbers and that we're expecting too much. Now we're seeing more of that lack of killer instinct, which is what I maintained before.

That's true, though there has been some criticism of his numbers which are slightly down in some areas compared to last year. I think the expectation that he's going to break out and average a triple double or some outrageous stat line does leave a lot of people feeling let down when he doesn't live up to such an amazingly high standard. Having said that, those qualities that don't show up on the stat sheet can certainly be questioned and are preventing him from getting to that next level which most people expect him to reach.

I still don't know if I'd call him lazy or lacking too much in a killer instinct though his abilities in the clutch are still suspect and I suppose part of that is due to an inability or reluctance to take over a game. The end result is that compared to other superstars in the league he doesn't get the job done when the game's on the line as often as you would expect given his talent. The Cleveland/Miami game the other day is a good example as he missed several free throws in the final minutes of the fourth quarter and an attempt at a game-tying three at the end of the game.

Now, it's difficult to fault him for the missed three because in all fairness being down 92-89 with a few seconds left is not a desirable position to be in and isn't a situation a team wants to find itself in very often if they want to be successful. The Cavs blew a lead against the Heat but LeBron wasn't the only one out there. However, those missed free throws that would have iced the game are a concern, especially since it's happened before and LeBron has been coming up short in must-score situations in recent weeks, even missing attempts around the basket that have been pretty good looks.

However, it's not entirely LeBron's fault. At the moment he's expected to create plays for himself while also be the team's top playmaker. A true point guard would go a long way in helping LeBron since the ball wouldn't need to be in his hands until he was where he wanted/need to be on the floor. Sometimes you can just inbound the ball to a player like LeBron and get out of his way but allowing him the freedom to move without the ball while someone else sets up the play could take some of the pressure of him in clutch situations.

I don't know about him achieving any kind of destiny this season but if he realises that there is a time to be selfless and a time to be a bit selfish and take over the game, not to mention working on his free throw shooting to get it up around 78%, then he may be a few roster improvements away from the success expected of a player of his calibre.

[Laxation]

It is probably because of a complete lack of motivation. His team sucks ass, and is going nowhere... Wade is getting all the butt sex from Stern and the media

All Lebron can do now is wait until his current contract expires so he can go to a new team, and earn his $100mil from Nike

[Weiland]

yeah..im not complaining and comparing his stats from last year and this year...yes his points are down but im more concerned about his playing style...his agressiveness is just down

[Matt]

wait until his current contract expires

too bad he signed that 4yr extension, effectively making him a slave to the organisation.

[maes]

Hard to be motivated when your current team sucks compared to your rookie team with Boozer, Ricky Davis, Big Z and Darius Miles roaming as a 6th. They also had some size on the bench with Diop, Mihm, and Battie.

Now they have Larry Hughes & Damon Jones.

[mvpshaq32]

Well Larry Hughes is getting his shot back. And I love Gooden's game. He needs to take more shots and he with Z are top 10 in offensive rebounds per game.
Anyways....did you guys see Pollard's mohawk? This guy is just crazy.....

[Chris_23]

It is interesting to note that LBJ's statistics are not just lesser than what he had last year, but lesser than what he had in his second year in the league. Obviously people expect more.

Im around Cleveland forums alot (mainly RealGM though), and LBJ gets alot of critique right now. His freethrown routine being more about 'signature move' than about 'FT perfomance, team perfomance'. That LBJ has no real clutch whatsoever, that he forces shots as if he was a great shooter (being merely a good one), that he has no real leadership and no support for coach and so on.

He has fallen nearly a rebound and assist per game compared to his second year, as well as in other categories, points included, and dominating-players-requirement FT's are at an all-time-low.

The thing is, people expected LeBron to be the next Michael Jordan. He was not that. He's also not the next Kobe Bryant or Gilbert Arenas (blossoming later). He is a fabulous athlete, but no potential for development other than through his IQ, and we are seeing him for the fourth year now and know alot more about him to know about his personality and potential to do that.

LeBron's destiny? I'm sure one of the more loved players of this decade, probably Hall of Famer if he pulls KG style of season with effort but no titles. Amazing player, but people expected more, and Cleveland suffers because of it, it's players, coaching staff, fans. LBJ would really benefit from being in a same team while a second fiddle. He's not MJ who came into the league and lead the league with his leadership, personality and out-of-this-world basketball.

[Matt]

i disagree. LeBron will undoubtadely improve. He'll improve his shooting ,decision making, become a leader etc...it all comes with time, just like MJ & Kobe and other greats went through it.

[Weiland]

decline, lazy or fatgiued, he' still one of the best players in the league..but still,people want to see the best out of him..that whats dissapointing

[cheater1034]

Several factors (in order most-least)

1) Coach Mike Brown - what an idiot. He implemented an entire new offense when the offense from last year was great. It didn't need changing. LeBron is taking less shots because he isnt told to dominate a game, and it is apparent he and the rest of his team has a lack of respect for Brown. Brown can not motivate his team, and will not be the coach to win a championship or get to a championship.
2) LeBron plays all-year round on team USA (he announced he should take a year off it it, lets hope he does)
3) LeBron is getting caught up in the hype of being a superstar and is losing some of his professionalism (lets hope he turns it around quick)
4) LeBron just turned 22 years old in December, he has plenty of time to become the greatest NBA player to ever play the game.