LABron James Discussion: The Final Year?

well, that we tend to play a non-shooting center for the bulk of the game, which crowds the roll. it almost has to be a pick and pop, which is less ideal with AD shooting like he has and the aforementioned bigs clogging any chance to attack the closeout (if it even comes).

i imagine that if things get desperate in a playoff game, you'll see the centers benched and the lebron/AD pick and roll unleashed. but it would be good to practice it here and there.

 

Wouldn't that be like asking Shaq not to dunk all season so he could surprise everyone in the playoffs?

I get the concept of the element of surprise, but if something is unstoppable wouldn't it always be difficult to neutralize?

I also wonder why they only do the opening alley oop to JaVale at the beginning of each game. Seems like it can be implemented other than just a center court jump ball situation.

 

my suggestion wasn't about surprise; it was about sustainability. AD needs to be at C for the pick and roll to work, and we can't play him heavy minutes at center all year.

 

AD can't pick-and-choose, though. If he wants to play less minutes at center, he has to give the team a reason to have him there in terms of spacing the floor. We can't have two guys just standing near the rim not creating any shot opportunities. Thankfully, all the Lakers have to do is make sure AD is healthy in the playoffs and then his minutes at center wouldn't be that worrisome. My only issue with AD right now is his health. He's one bump from Woj tweeting that he will be sidelined for weeks...

 

Oh snap, I forgot to use /sarcasm tag

sorry you wasted your time posting advanced stats irrelevant to his turnovers trying to make a point

 

i mean, the early results, save for the clippers game--in which that was mercilessly exploited--indicate that we can play and win a lot of games without him at c. vash posted some stats demonstrating that we're not doing all that well with him at c so far. i think there are other reasons for that, but in any case, we're winning playing big and playing defense.

 

Oh snap, you must have also forgot to click this particular link which has our boy 8th best in the league in ast/TO ratio (30mpg minimum).

https://stats.nba.com/players/advan...E*30&Season=2019-20&SeasonType=Regular Season

 

Yes, after the first two links weren't relevant, I basically dismissed your input. Sorry about that. #dobetter

 

Ya, that lineup worked. Lakers brought the lead up while Lebron sat. Can't deny that lineup works. Denver is the number 1 rated defense too and they made them look bad. Hella good sign.

 

Crap. Just noticed that I out that in the wrong thread....

 

Additional stat links were provided for Ortg (14th best in league), ast% (2nd best in league) and total touches (1st in the league) to show just how much the offense runs through him. Despite all that ball time, his turnovers are nowhere near the problem you make it out to be.

Maybe you can better understand the correlation to why those stats were provided to dispute your disappointment in his turnovers. I understand that “ball time” might mean something different entirely to you doe.

#dobater

 

don't get me started on Dwight lol

 

Nice floor game, his jumper wasn't falling, some good defensive moments, etc.

Oh and all in 29 mins...that's the best part.

 

Can we ever get a game where both LeBron's FT's and three point shooting are going well? Seems like one or the other.

 

Lebron has his best co-star in his career, sorry Wade, and Lebron is a title away from cementing Top 5 all time with ZERO argument.

This season can be epic in so many ways. Imagine Lebron winning his 5th MVP, wins All-Star MVP and Finals MVP, then beating the Clippers in the WCF, and with some hope, the C Bags in the Finals, that would likely get votes for him to be above Jordan.

Next 6 months could be history in the making in so many ways.

 

Hello all. Let me introduce myself by explaining that I'm a bit of an oddball- I am not really a Laker fan. I'm from the Dallas-Fort Worth area and I've been a die-hard Mavericks fan my whole life. In fact, not only am I not really a Laker fan, but I've actually hated the Lakers with a passion for as long as I can remember. HOWEVER, like millions of other NBA fans who simply appreciate greatness no matter what jersey it comes in, I absolutely love Lebron. Lebron kept my love of the NBA alive while my beloved Mavericks were in the wilderness. I love Lebron so much he's made me root for the Lakers. The man has actually made me a casual Laker-fan, and that's quite an amazing accomplishment. (And now that I'm a sort of duel Mavs/Lakers fan, the love-fest between Lebron and Luka is a hell of a lot of fun for me.)

With that out of the way, I want to share this non-Laker homer observation, and see what some Laker fans think.

I've watched quite a bit of the Lakers this season, and so far what I've seen has confirmed what I felt from the moment Lebron showed up there- Anthony Davis is not only the best teammate Lebron has ever had, but he's the best teammate Lebron could have ever hoped for. AD is the teammate Lebron has needed, and has probably dreamed of his entire career. He may have won two titles with Wade and one with Kyrie, and he very well not win any with AD, but still, AD is the perfect player to maximize Lebron's abilities at this late stage of his career.

This is one of the most fascinating things to me about Lebron's career. He has always been more Magic than Michael. Lebron has always been more comfortable as a facilitator first, scorer second. However until this, his 17th year in the league, he has never had the right teammates. As phenomenally talented as Wade and Kyrie were, and as much success as Lebron had with them, they were both ball dominant guards. And as much as those guys could score, Lebron still always had to be the primary scorer and first option. The perfect teammate for Lebron has always been a super athletic big man who can shoot from anywhere and dominate off the pick and roll. Isn't it telling that Lebron is about to lead the league in assists for the first time in his career, at age 35?

AD is the guy I'm sure he hoped Kyrie would be- the guy who can carry Lebron into his twilight years. The Duncan to his Robinson.

Hate Lebron all you want. You can call him a lot of things, but the one thing you cannot call him is dumb. The dude is strategic AF. He knows what the hell he's doing. I have no doubt this is what he planned all along. He knew when he went to LA that he would probably have to sacrifice a year of his career, but that it would pay off big time. He knew AD was the one guy who could carry him further than anyone else, and he knew he could get him. For all last year, the talking heads wrote him off, talked of him being washed up, and how horrible his start was with the Lakers. A few short months later, his team has the best record in the league, and he's one of four leading MVP candidates. He's having the last laugh yet again... He knew what the hell he was doing.

 

Welcome to the board. You’ve got yourself a pretty fantastic player to root for in Doncic for the next 5-6 years til he signs with the Lakers.

might as well stay!