Is Lebron James capable of guarding all 5 positions?

[StateOfMind12]

Someone believes so....

I think it is better that I make a new thread about it since he is derailing the other one.


Is it really biased to say LeBron can guard all 5 positions when I have watched the man do it for his entire career? He has guarded Rondo, Paul, and Rose, and shut them all down. He has guarded Kobe, and Wade. He has guarded Granger, Melo, Durant, nd shut them all down. He has guarded a bunch of PF's, and I have seen him guard Dwight Howard and not let him score in the post. His ability is fantastic. He is one of the most versatile NBA players of all time, can literally play 4 positions at an all star level. The only other players with his versatility are Pippen and Rodman, but Rodman could not have played SG, or PG (offensively).

Refute my point then? If you want me to just stop then why are you posting on a message board. Riddle me this. Who guarded Rondo when the Cavs played the Celtics in '09, who guarded Rose? In the 2009-2010 season against the Magic LeBron stopped Dwight from scoring, if he can stop Dwight he can stop any other C. Look for PF's he has guarded. Shard is one from the 2009 playoffs. All you say is I am biased, but I can actually prove my point. You on the other hand provide no counter argument.


Of course this is also the same guy that says Lebron is the best non-PG passer ever and also says that Lebron James would be taken first in an all-time draft over anyone including the likes of Kareem, MJ, Russell, etc.

[MichaelCheazley]

I think he can. But it depends.Any player playing each position counts?

[magnax1]

No. He can guard 1-3 very well if he wants, can probably guard some small and more perimeter oriented PF's, but I doubt he can guard any center effectively on a consistent basis and I've never seen him do it.

[Real Men Wear Green]

Anyone 6'9 or shorter he's got a shot but I don't recall ever seeing him guard a 7-footer.

[lilgodfather1]

I've never said LeBron would be taken first in an all time draft lol. I have said he would easily be top 5 though, and be taken over Jordan for sure. If all the GM's knew about them was what was known at the time of their drafts. If they knew that Jordan would be GOAT he would be first obviously.

That said Shaq would likely go first overall, followed by Wilt, Duncan, LeBron and then Jordan. Very subjective.

Oh and you forgot my first post where I said and I qoute


LeBron could literally play the PG, SG, SF, PF, and most C's straight up without a drop off in his defensive ability

Edit: LeBron is the best passing non PG ever.

[knightfall88]

yes he can but not successfully

[nathanjizzle]

you guys are stupid if you think lebron james could consistently gaurd a great pointguard....you seen what chris paul did.

[lilgodfather1]

you guys are stupid if you think lebron james could consistently gaurd a great pointguard....you seen what chris paul did.
I've seen CP3 being guarded by LeBron before. He was lighting the Cavs up all game, then LeBron played him in the fourth, and I believe he went pointless.

[j3lademaster]

Depends on the center: Bargnani, possibly; Bynum, no.

As far as the all-time draft goes I may take Lebron first if it were based purely off of scouting and not knowing what they would have done in the NBA.

[Collie]

I think he can guard 2's/3's/ and smaller 4's on a consistent basis. He would struggle against crafty point guards who can shoot the midrange reliably (like 08-09 Paul), and bigger power forwards (Imagine him trying to guard prime Tim Duncan or someone with McHale's post moves). You can put him on centers with minimal scoring skills, but he'd get chewed up against good scoring centers. Maybe in short bursts he can hold his own a bit with some help D.

[Lebron23]

you guys are stupid if you think lebron james could consistently gaurd a great pointguard....you seen what chris paul did.


Derrick "Modern Day Isiah Thomas" Rose is a great PG. :confusedshrug: :confusedshrug: :confusedshrug:

[chips93]

didnt rondo light him up when he tried guard him in 2010?

james has a shot at guarding any perimeter player, and some big men, ive never seen him shut down a good, interior, power forward. guarding rashard lewis doesnt mean you can guard power forwards. :rolleyes:

id dont remember him ever guarding dwight, let alone shutting him down, or ever hearing about that before.

[lilgodfather1]

I think he can guard 2's/3's/ and smaller 4's on a consistent basis. He would struggle against crafty point guards who can shoot the midrange reliably (like 08-09 Paul), and bigger power forwards (Imagine him trying to guard prime Tim Duncan or someone with McHale's post moves). You can put him on centers with minimal scoring skills, but he'd get chewed up against good scoring centers. Maybe in short bursts he can hold his own a bit with some help D.
Here's the thing. Nobody coul guard prime Duncan, and nobody can guard C's 1 on 1 if they are great offensive players.

[Real Men Wear Green]

you guys are stupid if you think lebron james could consistently gaurd a great pointguard....you seen what chris paul did.
You're stupid if you've already forgotten how he defended Derrick Rose. In reality the toughest thing for a player to deal with is a bigger defender with exceptional quickness and agility.

[lilgodfather1]

Well I am done with this guy. He has not even tried to refute my posts. All he does is have other people fight his battles for him, and from what I gather from this thread people don't necessarily disagree with me. As I said he could guard most C's in the NBA today. And he can guard PG's thru PF's. You're not going to ask LeBron to guard Gasol, prime Duncan, or prime Shaq, but he could easily guard Horford, Noah, Varejao, Camby, etc. Again you're not going to ask him to guard Dwight Howard for 20 minutes a game.

[LakersReign]

This is that worthless media hype thing all over again. Lebron is a big guy who has a lot of quicks, but that's it. He has shown very little interest in playing C, or the post for that matter. If all that were true, then he'd know he could take that big body and abuse people in the post. He's way more interested in shooting 3's like a PG to consistently play the post, where he'd really be a beast.

[inclinerator]

he can use his strength to push some centers further from the basket, but they'll always get the shot off cuz of their length and height advantage

[knightfall88]

Well I am done with this guy. He has not even tried to refute my posts. All he does is have other people fight his battles for him, and from what I gather from this thread people don't necessarily disagree with me. As I said he could guard most C's in the NBA today. And he can guard PG's thru PF's. You're not going to ask LeBron to guard Gasol, prime Duncan, or prime Shaq, but he could easily guard Horford, Noah, Varejao, Camby, etc. Again you're not going to ask him to guard Dwight Howard for 20 minutes a game.

So Lebron can guard ANYONE in all 5 positions as long as they are scrubs. Fckn amazing.

[outbreak]

I hate threads like this but anyway, yes you could claim he can guard all 5 positions but no i don't think he can guard ANY player in these positions. There's alot of guys in the NBA you can say could guard all 5 but it all depends on who the match up is at that position. Also depends on what kind of help defense their receiving and what the rest of his teams doing.

[lilgodfather1]

So Lebron can guard ANYONE in all 5 positions as long as they are scrubs. Fckn amazing.
Ilist three of the top 10 C's in the league and you call them scrubs. Good post.

[StateOfMind12]

No. He can guard 1-3 very well if he wants, can probably guard some small and more perimeter oriented PF's, but I doubt he can guard any center effectively on a consistent basis and I've never seen him do it.
I'm pretty much with you. He can probably guard some three point shooting PFs and Cs like Ryan Anderson, Andrea Bargnani and Mehmet Okur but he would no chance against legit post players like LaMarcus Aldridge, Amare Stoudemire, Dwight Howard, etc.

Who cares if he can guard some scrub at PF or C. Kobe probably can too, so what difference does it make?

[hitmanyr2k]

You're stupid if you've already forgotten how he defended Derrick Rose. In reality the toughest thing for a player to deal with is a bigger defender with exceptional quickness and agility.

I would like to see if Lebron could guard Derrick Rose for an entire game or even an entire half as opposed to the last few minutes of the 4th qtr where Rose has already expended a ton of energy carrying a huge offensive load.

[chips93]

Well I am done with this guy. He has not even tried to refute my posts. All he does is have other people fight his battles for him, and from what I gather from this thread people don't necessarily disagree with me. As I said he could guard most C's in the NBA today. And he can guard PG's thru PF's. You're not going to ask LeBron to guard Gasol, prime Duncan, or prime Shaq, but he could easily guard Horford, Noah, Varejao, Camby, etc. Again you're not going to ask him to guard Dwight Howard for 20 minutes a game.

these guys would crush him on the boards.

[RRR3]

This is that worthless media hype thing all over again. Lebron is a big guy who has a lot of quicks, but that's it. He has shown very little interest in playing C, or the post for that matter. If all that were true, then he'd know he could take that big body and abuse people in the post. He's way more interested in shooting 3's like a PG to consistently play the post, where he'd really be a beast.
LeBron has been playing in the post a fair amount this year. Watch him play for once, dumbass

[RRR3]

I'm pretty much with you. He can probably guard some three point shooting PFs and Cs like Ryan Anderson, Andrea Bargnani and Mehmet Okur but he would no chance against legit post players like LaMarcus Aldridge, Amare Stoudemire, Dwight Howard, etc.

Who cares if he can guard some scrub at PF or C. Kobe probably can too, so what difference does it make?
:oldlol:
First of all, no
Secondly, WTF does Kobe have to do with this thread?

[StateOfMind12]

:oldlol:
First of all, no
Secondly, WTF does Kobe have to do with this thread?
Scrub PFs and Cs? I am sure Kobe could. My point is it is pointless because pretty much any wing player is capable of doing it, not to mention if it is just a bunch of scrub PFs and Cs.

[lbj23clutch]

Only the 1-3 positions.

[imdaman99]

he can guard the 1,2, and 5s on the knicks. melo and amare would light him up

[Lucifer]

Hell no. Centers like Bynum, Howard would manhandle him.

[brisbaneman]

No, he can only guard 2 positions and he'd not even good at that.

[ImmortalD24]

I've seen CP3 being guarded by LeBron before. He was lighting the Cavs up all game, then LeBron played him in the fourth, and I believe he went pointless.
You mean then the Cavaliers defense trapped him at midcourt in the 4th... because he did just fine 1on1 with LeBron.

[RRR3]

he can guard the 1,2, and 5s on the knicks. melo and amare would light him up
Melo career against LBJ: 21.8 PPG on 44.3 FG% (32.1 3P%). Below his career averages.


To the OP, LBJ can guard 3 positions for sure, he can guard pretty much any SG or SF well. PG's it depends, but he can definitely do a good job on PG's. PF's again it depends though if they are a post player he probably won't do as well (LBJ is much more of a perimeter defender). I haven't seen him guard centers.

[pauk]

Yes....

[jlip]

Depends on the matchup

[imdaman99]

Melo career against LBJ: 21.8 PPG on 44.3 FG% (32.1 3P%). Below his career averages.
show me recent numbers. numbers when both are in their prime aka the last few years.

[pauk]

Depends on the matchup

this

[Soundwave]

Could he? In theory sure.

The Heat use Joel Anthony to cover Cs from time to time and he's what? 1 inch taller than LeBron? Probably not even as strong?

It would make no sense to do it though because it would get him in foul trouble/wear him out for no reason.

[Legends66NBA7]

this

Dude, is that you in the avatar ?

[ImmortalD24]

Dude, is that you in the avatar ?
I'm pretty sure pauk is asian (not that there's anything wrong with it).. and no, that's Danny Green.


The Heat use Joel Anthony to cover Cs from time to time and he's what? 1 inch taller than LeBron? Probably not even as strong?
Joel is definitely stronger than LeBron.. and much much longer. Not sure if serious.

[pauk]

Dude, is that you in the avatar ?

lol! no.. its Danny Green... i lost a bet yesterday against MooseJuiceBowen in the heat-spurs gamethread... betting on lebron getting a triple double :D bron got lazy with the rebounds... bah...

[pauk]

I'm pretty sure pauk is asian (not that there's anything wrong with it).. and no, that's Danny Green.


Joel is definitely stronger than LeBron.. and much much longer. Not sure if serious.

European, from Bosnia.... what the hell made you think im asian? :D

[pauk]

Could he? In theory sure.

The Heat use Joel Anthony to cover Cs from time to time and he's what? 1 inch taller than LeBron? Probably not even as strong?

It would make no sense to do it though because it would get him in foul trouble/wear him out for no reason.

this

[Legends66NBA7]

Ah okay.

First time looking at the guy.

[niko]

If he played the Knicks right now he could guard all 5 at one time.

[ImmortalD24]

European, from Bosnia.... what the hell made you think im asian? :D
Ah, my mistake.. I might have mistaken you for another user.

[inclinerator]

he probably thought u were 32dayz

[pauk]

Ah, no worries! :cheers: didnt mean it before as something being wrong with being asian or something... quite the opposite! Need some automatic Kung Fu skills.... :D

[Bernie Nips]

show me recent numbers. numbers when both are in their prime aka the last few years.

Carmelo's last 4 games vs LeBron (dating back to 2008):

29/9/2 on 45% shooting
40/6/7 on 46% shooting (LeBron got 43/13/15 that game)
13/2/1 on 35% shooting
18/8/2 on 41% sohoting

Coincidentally, that 40 point game is the only time Carmelo has scored 30+ on LeBron... in the NBA... ever.

LeBron however has scored 30+ on Carmelo 4 times. For instance, in the game where Carmelo got 13... LeBron got 33. LeBron also got 35 to Carmelo's 14 once.

So I'm not sure why you think Carmelo lights LeBron up. Head to head its:

LeBron: 25/7/8 on 46%
Carmelo: 22/6/3 on 44%

[RRR3]

If he played the Knicks right now he could guard all 5 at one time.
IDK you sure LeBron could handle the awesome powers of Mike Bibby?

[Pushxx]

LeBron is allergic to banging in the post on offense. What makes you think he wants to bang in the post on defense?

That said, he's an elite defender for 2 positions and can guard the PG very well. Mixed bag against PFs.

[pauk]

Scottie Pippen and maybe Dennis Rodman are other ones who could do it.... in Pippens case i believe he could actually have overall done the best job on 5 people compared to Lebron/Rodman.. overall... Pippen was truly something else

[Pushxx]

Scottie Pippen and maybe Dennis Rodman are other ones who could do it.... in Pippens case i believe he could actually have overall done the best job on 5 people compared to Lebron/Rodman.. overall... Pippen was truly something else

I agree. Pippen would be the best choice for this. McHale also deserves a mention.

[arifgokcen]

Could he? In theory sure.

The Heat use Joel Anthony to cover Cs from time to time and he's what? 1 inch taller than LeBron? Probably not even as strong?

It would make no sense to do it though because it would get him in foul trouble/wear him out for no reason.

Joel is not 6'9 he is actually 6'7 with freakishly long arms and i saw with lebron right next to him i can assure you lebron was a tad bit taller than him.BTW wade himself said he is 6'7 in a good day.Just watch heat games you will understand why.
BTW he has all the tools to guard every position.Heck he is even stronger than most centers in the league.Right now at 6'8 he is 266lbs(miami preseason report) with %5 body fat.However he doesnt do it.It would be waste to make him guard post players because when he really focuses,he can probably shut down any wing player with his size strength.We all know what he did to derrick rose(probably quickest pg and best finisher at his position)

[ballerz]

No. do you really think he would be able to guard center like Dwight, Bynum, Gasol etc

[nathanjizzle]

Derrick "Modern Day Isiah Thomas" Rose is a great PG. :confusedshrug: :confusedshrug: :confusedshrug:

no shit you were going to bring that up? like i said consistently. lebron wasnt guarding rose the whole game. put him on a pg the whole game he wont beable to do it.

[indiefan24]

haha no

[SilkkTheShocker]

didnt rondo light him up when he tried guard him in 2010?

james has a shot at guarding any perimeter player, and some big men, ive never seen him shut down a good, interior, power forward. guarding rashard lewis doesnt mean you can guard power forwards. :rolleyes:

id dont remember him ever guarding dwight, let alone shutting him down, or ever hearing about that before.

Wrong. He had to guard Rondo at times because Mo and Parker were getting crushed in the playoffs.

[NBAtipoff]

LBJ probably could guard 1-4. He'll have some problems with centers. Nene, Dwight, real physical guys may be a little too much for him. Maybe not. I'd say he's the most capable to guard all the positions. His speed and strength are unmatched.

[arifgokcen]

LBJ probably could guard 1-4. He'll have some problems with centers. Nene, Dwight, real physical guys may be a little too much for him. Maybe not. I'd say he's the most capable to guard all the positions. His speed and strength are unmatched.

You know he weighs 266lbs and nene weighs 250lbs right and nene is around 6'10 6'11 whereas lebron is 6'8.He is powerful than him and as for dwight he is only 6'9.5 not even 6'10 and i have seen them side by side they look so similar.Their height difference is not more than 1-1.5 inch

http://www2.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/LeBron+James+Dwight+Howard+Miami+Heat+v+Orlando+Qc s_X3yWOqUl.jpg

http://thebiglead.fantasysportsven.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/lebron-dwight-howard.jpg

http://static.sky.it/static/images/sezioni/sport/maggio_09/LeBron_james_dwight_howard.JPG

http://www3.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/LeBron+James+Dwight+Howard+2010+NBA+Star+Game+xmeu GBXWf4Nl.jpg

http://tribalpursuit.northcoastnow.com/files/2010/09/image9.png

As you can see from the photos,howard and james actually look very similar

[HurricaneKid]

There was a thread here not that long ago where people were arguing over who was bigger Dwight or LeBron. A lot of people were going with LeBron. I think if he wanted to he could easily learn to guard most bigs. LOL at him not being able to bang with LA. He outweighs LA by at least 30 pounds.

No way Pippen would ever be able to bang like that down low.

To be honest, I would prefer him on a PF or C than a guy like RayRay or JET that is great without the ball. He cheats too much on D and relies on his athleticism to guard guys like that.

[Eric Cartman]

Lebron = great perimeter defender. Especially if they are point guard or small guards because of his quickest (excluding Jason Terry :lol )

As for guarding 4's & 5's no way in hell. He doesn't like the pound & grind.

[TheMan]

Someone believes so....

I think it is better that I make a new thread about it since he is derailing the other one.





Of course this is also the same guy that says Lebron is the best non-PG passer ever and also says that Lebron James would be taken first in an all-time draft over anyone including the likes of Kareem, MJ, Russell, etc.
lol@picking him over MJ or KAJ...I wouldn't even pick LBJ over Magic.

[rodman91]

1-3 he can defend. 4-5, Body wise? Yes.But he lacks hustle,agression and fundamental to guard well.

[DrunkenDave]

lol@picking him over MJ or KAJ...I wouldn't even pick LBJ over Magic.

Jordan wasnt even 1st in his own draft. He wasnt even second. If you dont know their career before draft, James is a sure top 5 pick and Jordan isnt even top 10.

And not too many posters here seem to understand the op. Lets say it this way: he is more capable guarding any position than any other player in the league. (That doesnt mean best defender, player or anything.)

[arifgokcen]

1-3 he can defend. 4-5, Body wise? Yes.But he lacks hustle,agression and fundamental to guard well.
I dont think he lacks agression hustle.He certainly has understood fundementals of defense.So i am not gonna get into that part however he said its not fun banging with big guys.That shows even though he is most of the time bigger than the so called big guys.He just doesnt like the pound & grind as rodman91 said.


Lebron = great perimeter defender. Especially if they are point guard or small guards because of his quickest (excluding Jason Terry :lol )

As for guarding 4's & 5's no way in hell. He doesn't like the pound & grind.

For those who actually says he is not capable of guarding 4-5 just look at the pictures i posted with howard right next to him.He is actually most capable heat player to guard those positions.He doesnt do it thats another topic.

[Pointguard]

If you can guard 80% of the position then its fair play to say he can guard the position. Centers are on self check these days anyway. Its not like great defending point guards stop Rose or Paul so expecting and off position to do it isn't fair. Great wings don't stop Kobe or Wade. Dwight Howard is the only center that's on the regular hard to guard list - tho, when a good defender is on him it's a very noticable difference. DMC and Bynum would be the only other one's capable of getting 20 on Lebron but they would be dead tired and playing half the game trying to keep up with Lebron. And when tired their basketball IQ's go down as well.

I do find it kind of ironic that the hardest position for Lebron would be the position he is built for, power forward. Aldridge, Gasol, Duncan and such play long and can adapt. You need hardcore fundamentals to handle a lot of PF's. But if Lebron is exposed to the fundamentals... yeah he could do it. He definitely could do it better than anybody right now.

To me Rodman had the greatest range - he guarded MJ and Shaq to the point Shaq slowed down and MJ made adjustments, which is amazing as most people couldn't affect their play at their own postions. His body type is similar to Lebrons - obviously Rod was more tenacious and better with the fundamentals. On the flip side Rodman doesn't have the weight, speed or athletism.

[TheMan]

Jordan wasnt even 1st in his own draft. He wasnt even second. If you dont know their career before draft, James is a sure top 5 pick and Jordan isnt even top 10.

And not too many posters here seem to understand the op. Lets say it this way: he is more capable guarding any position than any other player in the league. (That doesnt mean best defender, player or anything.)

But we do know their careers, MJ>>>>LBJ:lol

Finally, LBJ has help and he got outplayed by Jason Terry in crunch time...gimme MJ all the time, brah.

[chips93]

Wrong. He had to guard Rondo at times because Mo and Parker were getting crushed in the playoffs.

where did isay he didnt guard rondo?

i said he tried, and he couldnt slow rondo down

[RRR3]

But we do know their careers, MJ>>>>LBJ:lol

Finally, LBJ has help and he got outplayed by Jason Terry in crunch time...gimme MJ all the time, brah.
You're not getting it. We know MJ>LBJ because we have experienced both of their NBA careers (well not all of LBJ's but he won't surpass MJ, just like every other player) and can evaluate them. But LBJ would be taken above him in a draft because of his insane potential. People always say what seperated Jordan was the intangibles, etc. But they don't draft based on intangibles. Sure, Jordan was a superb athlete and had amazing potential coming out of college, but he wasn't even taken first or 2nd in his own draft. LeBron would be taken over him if no one knew how their careers would pan out. Would it be a wrong move? Of course, but it would happen unless the drafters had ESP. Hindsight is 20/20

[Phong]

If he was so capable of guarding all 5 positions why did he let Nowitzki, Terry, Marion and Barea take turn destroying the Heat in the Finals? He should have switched to guard whoever was hot. :confusedshrug:

[nightprowler10]

You're not getting it. We know MJ>LBJ because we have experienced both of their NBA careers (well not all of LBJ's but he won't surpass MJ, just like every other player) and can evaluate them. But LBJ would be taken above him in a draft because of his insane potential. People always say what seperated Jordan was the intangibles, etc. But they don't draft based on intangibles. Sure, Jordan was a superb athlete and had amazing potential coming out of college, but he wasn't even taken first or 2nd in his own draft. LeBron would be taken over him if no one knew how their careers would pan out. Would it be a wrong move? Of course, but it would happen unless the drafters had ESP. Hindsight is 20/20
Keep in mind that MJ was third because talented big men have always been hard to come by. I don't think it would be the case had MJ been competing with two swingmen for that #1 pick.

[2LeTTeRS]

If you can guard 80% of the position then its fair play to say he can guard the position.

Finally somebody gets it. Since when did CP3 going off on a guy mean he couldn't effectively guard point guards? Newsflash, even the best defenders can't shut down elite players. thats why their elite in the first place.

[SilkkTheShocker]

where did isay he didnt guard rondo?

i said he tried, and he couldnt slow rondo down

Actually he did slow him down. Thats when Pierce started going off on Moon/Parker.