Do people still believe LeBron's defense is overrated?

[1987_Lakers]

Shut down Tony Parker 2 straight games.:oldlol:

He has more impact on defense than a peak Jordan, yes I said it.

[Mr. NBA]

Parker was hurt. Hard to say he contained him. Heat bigs did amazing pick n roll defense. And did you not see Kawhi getting past LeBron?

[TheReal Kendall]

Parker was hurt. Hard to say he contained him. Heat bigs did amazing pick n roll defense. And did you not see Kawhi getting past LeBron?


:applause:

[DatAsh]

Lebron's defense was great this postseason, even better than last year. On the other hand, I thought his regular season defense was better last year.

[Young X]

Dude was getting cooked by Paul George, yet he's a better defender than Jordan? :facepalm

[Goldrush25]

Parker was hurt. Hard to say he contained him. Heat bigs did amazing pick n roll defense. And did you not see Kawhi getting past LeBron?

Parker says he wasn't hurt in his post game interview. Said he just didn't play well enough.

[tikay0]

Ummmmmmmmmm..............yeah.

[DuMa]

He did a phenomenal job on Parker. Parker couldnt shake him and couldnt get a clean look while James was locked on him in the half court.

[1987_Lakers]

Dude was getting cooked by Paul George, yet he's a better defender than Jordan? :facepalm

LeBron made Paul George his bitch in game 7.

[RedBlackAttack]

Just like every player in the league, some guys matchup better against certain guys than others. James is the perfect foil for Parker.

I don't think Paul George is a better player than Tony Parker, but his offense is much better against James' defense.

Matchups. I don't buy into the whole "overrated" conversation. The Heat have a great team defense. James is a big part of that.

To be as good defensively as the Heat/Spurs, every guy on the floor has to play on a string.

[Linspired]

Good but not great

[1Time4YourMind]

idk if u notice some of paul george game's during the finals, game 7 he was shut down by lebron.

give james credit for his amazing defense, getting tired of the 'overrated' label.

[tazb]

Parker was hurt. Hard to say he contained him. Heat bigs did amazing pick n roll defense. And did you not see Kawhi getting past LeBron?

But when he dropped 26 points on 10-14 shooting in Game 5 he wasn't hurt?

:roll: :facepalm

[LeBird]

Lebron because of his physical ability, intelligence and selflessness is one of the greatest defenders I've seen. He is Pippen on crack.

[tmacattack33]

Parker was hurt. Hard to say he contained him. Heat bigs did amazing pick n roll defense. And did you not see Kawhi getting past LeBron?


In the past two games, Parker has played well against Chalmers. But then Lebron switched onto him and he couldn't do much at all.

So are you trying to say Parker was healthy in the first quarter, and then injured in the second quarter, and then healthy for a few plays in the second quarter, then injured again to close the second quarter when Lebron was on him, etc ?

I don't think so.

[tmacattack33]

Dude was getting cooked by Paul George, yet he's a better defender than Jordan? :facepalm

I guess you didn't watch Game 7 against Indiana.

And I guess you didn't see Lebron shutting down David West as well all series...the dude couldn't even get the ball with Lebron guarding him.

[Mr. NBA]

Parker says he wasn't hurt in his post game interview. Said he just didn't play well enough.
They would not make an excuse. His injury he said would had taken 10 days to heal. This was mentioned like less than a week ago.

[Jacks3]

Meh. Parker would have struggled against any long, athletic defender.

The guy was gassed and playing on one hamstring. Did people forget his poor play in Games 2,3,4 with no LBJ on him?

Bizarre that so many people are focusing on LeBron's one-on-one defense when it was help/team defense that really special.

[lefthook00]

It was more about Parker getting a screen EVERY SINGLE TIME LeBron was on him. Parker simply didn't take it to LeBron with the dribble when he was guarding him because making a play off a screen takes LeBron out of the equation defensively against every other Spur for that play.

I don't think there was even ONE time that Parker tried to take LeBron off the dribble when he was guarding him.

[TheCorporation]

Dude was getting cooked by Paul George, yet he's a better defender than Jordan? :facepalm

19 ppg on 47% = cooked

:lol

So what does LBJ's 25 ppg mean he did to the Spurs and Kahwi Leonard? :lol

[FindingTim]

Just like every player in the league, some guys matchup better against certain guys than others. James is the perfect foil for Parker.


Agreed, James was the perfect foil-- although he is essentially the perfect foil for anyone not named Paul George... (or anyone over 7'0 not named Tiago)

his length and athleticism was just too much-- Tony was overmatched. It's pretty incredible considering Parker is arguably the quickest and shiftiest player in the league and Lebron is the size of an incredibly tall NFL linebacker.

I used to think Lebron's D was overrated, but his wife told me it's smooth with tremendous girth.

no but seriously, his defense is incredible. Even if he had scored 10 points this game, he would have been the most valuable player for shutting down the Spurs main weapon.

[Hoopz2332]

His defense against David West was beast in that pacers series:bowdown:

[Blue&Orange]

But when he dropped 26 points on 10-14 shooting in Game 5 he wasn't hurt?

:roll: :facepalm
SO what happened to Lebron? He obviously didn't play that game. :roll:


Players blowing by Lebron left and right, let's all forget that, look at the boxscore see who had a bad shooting night and say it was Lebron defense :lol

Hell, JVG on live TV said that Manu and Parker both had bad games in game 6 thanks to Lebron, lol, dude defended both at the same time.


Overrated? nah.

[arifgokcen]

I think the best thing about him is his fundamentals defensively.He is perhaps the most fundamentally sound defender.(or #2 best behind duncan).Thats the best part about him defensively.

[Harison]

Lebron's defense is great and no one is questioning it. It becomes overrated when some fans claim he is DPOY or one of the best defenders All-time, now thats an exaggeration :lol

What concerns Parker, LBJ no doubt did a good job on him, but lets keep it in the perspective - Parker wasnt 100% healthy, and Lebron is like 6 inches taller. If LBJ wouldnt have done great job on him in these circumstances, he would be pretty crappy defender :D

[Greg Oden 50]

Shut down Tony Parker 2 straight games.:oldlol:

He has more impact on defense than a peak Jordan, yes I said it.

YES........................

LEONARD DRIVE PASS HIM COUPLES TIMES :roll:

[Greg Oden 50]

Lebron because of his physical ability, intelligence and selflessness is one of the greatest defenders I've seen. He is Pippen on crack.

PLEASE DUN KNOCK DOWN PIIPEN :facepalm

[Greg Oden 50]

Lebron's defense is great and no one is questioning it. It becomes overrated when some fans claim he is DPOY or one of the best defenders All-time, now thats an exaggeration :lol

What concerns Parker, LBJ no doubt did a good job on him, but lets keep it in the perspective - Parker wasnt 100% healthy, and Lebron is like 6 inches taller. If LBJ wouldnt have done great job on him in these circumstances, he would be pretty crappy defender :D

dun FORGOT LEBRON INJURY PARKER IN GAME 2,HE IS ****ING DIRTY :banghead:

[Greg Oden 50]

Shut down Tony Parker 2 straight games.:oldlol:

He has more impact on defense than a peak Jordan, yes I said it.

NO..........U JUST HATE JORDAN,LAKERS FANS :oldlol:

[plowking]

Parker was hurt. Hard to say he contained him. Heat bigs did amazing pick n roll defense. And did you not see Kawhi getting past LeBron?

:oldlol:

Yeah, when he had Chalmers and Cole on him he was fine. When Lebron switched to him that hammy really started hurting. :oldlol:

Bron is an animal against PG's, SG's and PF's on defense. Its the SF position he struggles to contain.

[Poochymama]

Lebron because of his physical ability, intelligence and selflessness is one of the greatest defenders I've seen. He is Pippen on crack.

:roll: :roll: :roll:

Someone needs to take off the homer goggles. Lebron's defense is great, but you obviously never watched Pippen play at all, though I'm sure that you'll claim you did. :lol

[Trollsmasher]

Did people even watch the Indy series?

George was mostly guarded by Wade. LeBron then made him his bitch when it was needed the most.

[Greg Oden 50]

:oldlol:

Yeah, when he had Chalmers and Cole on him he was fine. When Lebron switched to him that hammy really started hurting. :oldlol:

Bron is an animal against PG's, SG's and PF's on defense. Its the SF position he struggles to contain.

AFTER LEBRON HURTS PARKER MAKE HIM INJURY IN GAME 2 :banghead:

[BlackJoker23]

Lebron because of his physical ability, intelligence and selflessness is one of the greatest defenders I've seen. He is Pippen on crack.
damn breh, we know whose on crack but it aint lebron

[Greg Oden 50]

Did people even watch the Indy series?

George was mostly guarded by Wade. LeBron then made him his bitch when it was needed the most.

NO MATTER .............PG IS NOT VERY GD SCORER

[ProfessorMurder]

Tony Parker didn't do shit when Chalmers was on him. Parker just sucked.

[plowking]

Did people even watch the Indy series?

George was mostly guarded by Wade. LeBron then made him his bitch when it was needed the most.

Did you?

Paul George was getting whatever he wanted against LeBron until game 7.

Wade absolutely shut George down whenever he was on him. Bron struggled on the other hand.

[Trollsmasher]

Did you?

Paul George was getting whatever he wanted against LeBron until game 7.

Wade absolutely shut George down whenever he was on him. Bron struggled on the other hand.
It seemed to me that he torched both though, with Wade on him for majority of the time.

Although I remember that stat than George was something like 10-13 from the field against LeBron after 3? games, so he was probably getting torched even more.

[plowking]

It seemed to me that he torched both though, with Wade on him for majority of the time.

Although I remember that stat than George was something like 10-13 from the field against LeBron after 3? games, so he was probably getting torched even more.

Wade was doing a great job on him. He was the only one containing him. Battier and Bron were getting killed.

[KG215]

Lebron because of his physical ability, intelligence and selflessness is one of the greatest defenders I've seen. He is Pippen on crack.
So he's a better defender than Pippen?

[DMAVS41]

Lebron is the best off ball wing defender in the league.

His man to man defense is generally great against guards, but is probably a little over-rated overall at times.

But he's a great defender and certainly one of the best perimeter defenders ever.

[aburre21]

Wade was doing a great job on him. He was the only one containing him. Battier and Bron were getting killed.
Wade did a great job the first 2 or 3 games...after that he got cooked until Lebron shut PG down in game 7


Lebron plays lazy defense a lot, it's so obvious. Dude plays flat footed and doesn't move his feet, but when he actually plays hard on defense and bends his knees and moves his feet he's one of the best defenders of all time. He turned it on game 7 of the Indy series and especially the second half of game 6 of the finals, dude came out with so much energy on defense I was astounded

[ILLsmak]

Lebron's defense is great and no one is questioning it. It becomes overrated when some fans claim he is DPOY or one of the best defenders All-time, now thats an exaggeration :lol


Yeah LeBron is good at defense. He's at least an all-nba something team defense legitly. Is he the best SF on defense in the NBA? Hmm, maybe. Although I'd say in the playoffs Butler impressed me more.

But he's not some defensive beast. Neither was Jordan. I honestly can't sit here and say which one was better at defense because I don't think either of them were nearly as good as people thought they were. But they were good enough that not only would they torch someone on the other end, but they would give them trouble. That's really all you can ask for. Guys who score 30 are nearly never all-time defenders. It's just not possible. Maybe bigs.

-Smak

[Jax]

Lebron is lazy defensively sometimes, if he went all out not caring about fouls he'd already have his DPOY. Sometimes he doesn't try to block to never get caught on pump fakes but if he did he'd have a heck of a lot more blocks in his resume.

[sportjames23]

Shut down Tony Parker 2 straight games.:oldlol:

He has more impact on defense than a peak Jordan, yes I said it.


Peak Jordan, DPOY. Peak Bron, no DPOY awards.

[sportjames23]

Lebron because of his physical ability, intelligence and selflessness is one of the greatest defenders I've seen. He is Pippen on crack.


:facepalm :facepalm :facepalm

[sportjames23]

Yeah LeBron is good at defense. He's at least an all-nba something team defense legitly. Is he the best SF on defense in the NBA? Hmm, maybe. Although I'd say in the playoffs Butler impressed me more.

But he's not some defensive beast. Neither was Jordan. I honestly can't sit here and say which one was better at defense because I don't think either of them were nearly as good as people thought they were. But they were good enough that not only would they torch someone on the other end, but they would give them trouble. That's really all you can ask for. Guys who score 30 are nearly never all-time defenders. It's just not possible. Maybe bigs.

-Smak


Then you obviously never saw Jordan play. Seriously, Bron doesn't even come close to MJ on defense. Ya'll niqqas need to watch some MJ vids of just his defense alone. There's plenty of them on YouTube.

[Electric Slide]

His defense is better than Jordan's, but Jordan is overrated in everything he does anyways.

Shut down Melo last season
Shut down George in Game 7 and West in the 4th of the series
Shut down Parker in the last 2 games.

Impressive stuff

[2013 Lakers]

A 6'8" 250 lb SF contained an injured 6'2" 185 lb PG? Weird.

[Electric Slide]

A 6'8" 250 lb SF contained an injured 6'2" 185 lb PG? Weird.
You make it act like he is suppose to.

Why doesn't Melo do that hten?

[sc19]

Overrated. Neal was shooting 3 in his face. Parker game winner on his face. Paul George game tying in his face too.

[Derka]

Its all about match-ups and how the guy you're guarding is playing on a given night.

Lebron got toasted a few times this postseason...he played some lockdown shit at other points, as well. And there's no denying he can at least attempt to guard all five positions. Pretty much par for the course, I'd say.

[Trollsmasher]

A 6'8" 250 lb SF contained an injured 6'2" 185 lb PG? Weird.
According to your logic, they should probably put Bosh on Nate Robinson next time he torches them...

[Greg Oden 50]

You make it act like he is suppose to.

Why doesn't Melo do that hten?

MELO JUST CHOKE NOT BECAUSE LBJ STOPPING HIM :oldlol:

[Greg Oden 50]

According to your logic, they should probably put Bosh on Nate Robinson next time he torches them...

LEONARD DRIVE PAST HIM COUPLE TIMES WHO iS NOT VERY GD BALL HANDLER :oldlol:

[arifgokcen]

Peak Jordan, DPOY. Peak Bron, no DPOY awards.
Well april '13 let me say to you this

PEAK DUNCAN>>>PEAK MJ defensively and no dpoy

[asdf1990]

When Lebron was focusing solely on the defensive end he shut players down. He is a freak of nature but you can't expect him to give it his all on the defensive end while carrying the offensive load.

Yeah geroge blew past him, lenoard too, hell even butler did it a few times but that was cuz he was taking possessions off on the defensive end to carry the offensive load not cuz he is a bad defender.

[Blue&Orange]

Yeah geroge blew past him, lenoard too, hell even butler did it a few times but that was cuz he was taking possessions off on the defensive end to carry the offensive load not cuz he is a bad defender.
:roll: I was waiting for this one, the classic coasting argument, people score on Lebron only when he allows it. :lol

Guess what, LEbron doesn't shutdown people, they are just taking possessions off on the offensive end to carry the defensive load. :roll:


Lebron stans are unbearably dumb.

[TonyMontana]

LeBrons defense is better than Jordan.

He is bigger, stronger, faster, longer and covers more ground.

Help defense is more important than man defense. All it takes is a pick to negate a great 1 on 1 defenders skillset. Jordan would foul out immediately in todays NBA since all he did was push guys on the perimeter.

[tpols]

When Lebron was focusing solely on the defensive end he shut players down. He is a freak of nature but you can't expect him to give it his all on the defensive end while carrying the offensive load.

Yeah geroge blew past him, lenoard too, hell even butler did it a few times but that was cuz he was taking possessions off on the defensive end to carry the offensive load not cuz he is a bad defender.
Lebron is not an elite man to man defender period. Paul Geroge a 17ppg player was dropping 30 on him multiple times because he has a) a long range jumper and b)a good first step. All you need to beat Lebron.

Lebron gets so much credit for shutting down an otherwise struggling and injured tony parker and derrick rose but the reason he shut them down for stretches(not all the time, parker rained a three in his eye and blew by for a layup to give the spurs their game 6 lead they choked away at the FT line) is because... they. cant. shoot. When you have a 6'8 defender shadowing a 6'0 PG that is used to scoring most of his points in the paint with tear drops and layups yes hell have a considerable advantage. He didnt have to press them. They were free to take a open jumper that they didnt like taking or drive in to a heavily congested heat defense waiting for it.

Lebrons help defense is elite. Man extremely overrated. I dont want to hear Melo.. dude shoots sub 40 percent against everyone in the playoffs.

[asdf1990]

:roll: I was waiting for this one, the classic coasting argument, people score on Lebron only when he allows it. :lol

Guess what, LEbron doesn't shutdown people, they are just taking possessions off on the offensive end to carry the defensive load. :roll:


Lebron stans are unbearably dumb.

what defensive load was parker carrying? shutting down mario chalmers lol? You think lebron is an alien, who will go all out on both ends for the entire game? why do you think they put him on role players in the first 3 quarters.

There is clearly a difference between Lebron when he is trying on the defensive end vs when he is half assing it, if you have watched him for his entire career you would know. The only players lebron has a hard time staying in front of is melo and now durant

salty ass knicks fans keep hating on Lebron for not choosing your shitty team and enjoy another decade of first round exits

[tpols]

what defensive load was parker carrying? shutting down mario chalmers lol? You think lebron is an alien, who will go all out on both ends for the entire game? why do you think they put him on role players in the first 3 quarters.

There is clearly a difference between Lebron when he is trying on the defensive end vs when he is half assing it, if you have watched him for his entire career you would know. The only players lebron has a hard time staying in front of is melo and now durant

salty ass knicks fans keep hating on Lebron for not choosing your shitty team and enjoy another decade of first round exits
What defensive load was Parker carrying? You mean the guy who was targeted in the PnR all game with Chalmers and Lebron? That defensive load? Parkers not even a good defender.. which is why they made him work.

And you give Lebron a pass for having to carry the offense but then dont give Parker one when he was the primary ballhandler/facilitator/passer on the Spurs? The guy who had the ball in his hands the most?

Lol at when hes trying and when hes not.. Again his man defense has never been elite. When hes hustling hard his help D can be amazing because he flies all over the place. His man is average. He can stay in front of guys with no jumper.. who are 8 inches shorter than him. Guys with multifacted games who he has to press can score against him like they could against any other SF.

[OldSchoolBBall]

He's not '88-'92 Jordan's equal in terms of defensive impact.

[RIP CITY]

Lebron's defense is great and no one is questioning it. It becomes overrated when some fans claim he is DPOY or one of the best defenders All-time, now thats an exaggeration :lol

This. He's a very good defender but he's not a legitimate DPOY candidate or one of the greatest defenders ever. Alot of people think he is, so yes, his defense is overrated.

[OldSchoolBBall]

LeBrons defense is better than Jordan.

He is bigger, stronger, faster, longer and covers more ground.


He most certainly is not faster, nor does he cover more ground. :oldlol: Jordan was clearly a better help defender than Lebron. Put down the pipe, kid.

[poido123]

Lebron is strong enough to defend Shaq, fast enough to defend Jordan, and awesome enough to contain Wilt. How is is he overrated? He can defend all five positions right? :oldlol:

[LeBird]

So he's a better defender than Pippen?

At times he definitely is. Pippen may be better mainly in the perimeter, but Lebron's value as a defensive player is incredible. He can guard players Pippen couldn't hope to.


He most certainly is not faster, nor does he cover more ground. :oldlol: Jordan was clearly a better help defender than Lebron. Put down the pipe, kid.

Er, what? :lol

[poido123]

At times he definitely is. Pippen may be better mainly in the perimeter, but Lebron's value as a defensive player is incredible. He can guard players Pippen couldn't hope to.



Er, what? :lol


:biggums:

[OldSchoolBBall]

Er, what? :lol

Yes, he was. Like I said: put down the pipe.

[poido123]

At times he definitely is. Pippen may be better mainly in the perimeter, but Lebron's value as a defensive player is incredible. He can guard players Pippen couldn't hope to.



Er, what? :lol


When you're diminishing both Jordan and Pippen's defensive aspects only to praise Lebron's overrated defense, I know that your agenda driven :lol:

Jordan was a great on the ball and off the ball defender. Same with Pippen.

Few players could consistently beat Jordan or Pippen off the first step which I cant say about Lebron. They also didn't lose their man as often as Lebron tends to do.

[LeBird]

When you're diminishing both Jordan and Pippen's defensive aspects only to praise Lebron's overrated defense, I know that your agenda driven :lol:

Jordan was a great on the ball and off the ball defender. Same with Pippen.

Pippen is arguably my favourite player who is not a GOAT candidate. So for me to say Lebron is more valuable than a Pippen is hard, but its the truth. He can just do more than Scottie. If you said Pippen was better, I wouldn't really be fussed. I think it shows how good Lebron is that he can legitimately compare.

Jordan may have been a good help defender for a few years, but for many more he was fishing for steals and in others he was letting Scottie do the dog work. I wouldn't go and say that Jordan has been given too much praise on the defensive side of his game as Kobe has, but he isn't as good as a lot of people think. Pippen was better, even without the awards. In the strongest Bulls team Jordan was the 3rd best defensive player (after Pippen and Rodman) and he played like it.

[plowking]

Can't wait for Lebron to get a DPOY already. It will finally put a rest to this "Jordan was a better defender because he won a DPOY".

Bron's better. He's more versatile, and he did in fact take on the role of manning up with the other teams best offensive player more often than Jordan did.

We saw Lebron shut down, and yes, absolutely shut down the like of Tony Parker, all the way to David West. We've seen him shut down Derrick Rose, etc. Anyone who thinks hes overrated on defense is fooling themselves.

He is the best man to man defender in the league. The only damn position he struggles to guard outside of centers is his own; SF. He seems to have trouble with the likes of Leonard, George, Gay, etc. The list is only about 5 players long at the SF position anyway.

[poido123]

Can't wait for Lebron to get a DPOY already. It will finally put a rest to this "Jordan was a better defender because he won a DPOY".

Bron's better. He's more versatile, and he did in fact take on the role of manning up with the other teams best offensive player more often than Jordan did.

We saw Lebron shut down, and yes, absolutely shut down the like of Tony Parker, all the way to David West. We've seen him shut down Derrick Rose, etc. Anyone who thinks hes overrated on defense is fooling themselves.

He is the best man to man defender in the league. The only damn position he struggles to guard outside of centers is his own; SF. He seems to have trouble with the likes of Leonard, George, Gay, etc. The list is only about 5 players long at the SF position anyway.


Do you believe this shit that your saying? Or are you just pumping out propaganda for all your other Heat cronies to come in and circlejerk with you.

[chips93]

Lebron gets so much credit for shutting down an otherwise struggling and injured tony parker and derrick rose but the reason he shut them down for stretches(not all the time, parker rained a three in his eye and blew by for a layup to give the spurs their game 6 lead they choked away at the FT line)

that layup was against chalmers, and the 3 that he hit on lebron was a difficult shot. that was great defense by him, you cant get a much better result when defending tony parker than a step back, top of the key, 3 pointer. amazing defense, just better offense no shame in that defense.


is because... they. cant. shoot. When you have a 6'8 defender shadowing a 6'0 PG that is used to scoring most of his points in the paint with tear drops and layups yes hell have a considerable advantage. He didnt have to press them. They were free to take a open jumper that they didnt like taking or drive in to a heavily congested heat defense waiting for it.

quick question.

if rose and parker are that easy to stop, why are they both so consistently great? if anybody can shut them down, why doesnt it happen more often?



imo lebron is a little overrated as a man to man defender. but hes still very very good. you can criticise him for his defense on point guards, but at the end of the day, his defense on pgs is just gravy.

its not fair to just expect a SF to be able to shut down PGs.

thats like criticising duncan for not being a better 3pt shooter. hes a PF its not something you should assume he can do.

its a bonus. as is brons defensive versatility.

[Bandito]

His defense is better than Jordan's, but Jordan is overrated in everything he does anyways.

Shut down Melo last season
Shut down George in Game 7 and West in the 4th of the series
Shut down Parker in the last 2 games.

Impressive stuff
He shut down Melo? Melo was killing the Heat defense by himself except in one game:facepalm

[97 bulls]

Lebron is not an elite man to man defender period. Paul Geroge a 17ppg player was dropping 30 on him multiple times because he has a) a long range jumper and b)a good first step. All you need to beat Lebron.

Lebron gets so much credit for shutting down an otherwise struggling and injured tony parker and derrick rose but the reason he shut them down for stretches(not all the time, parker rained a three in his eye and blew by for a layup to give the spurs their game 6 lead they choked away at the FT line) is because... they. cant. shoot. When you have a 6'8 defender shadowing a 6'0 PG that is used to scoring most of his points in the paint with tear drops and layups yes hell have a considerable advantage. He didnt have to press them. They were free to take a open jumper that they didnt like taking or drive in to a heavily congested heat defense waiting for it.

Lebrons help defense is elite. Man extremely overrated. I dont want to hear Melo.. dude shoots sub 40 percent against everyone in the playoffs.
Great post. Notice how it gets no response. LeBron James defense is overrated. I've never seen a pkayer get so much credit for defending a player for a possession. And then, its not really him having to get up in a players face. All he has to do is baxk off them. Why didnt he stop Jason Terry? Kevin Durant avg 30 on 50% shooting. Paul George had multiple 30 pt games against him.

[guy]

I was listening to ESPN radio the other day and they were raving about Lebron's block on Duncan in game 6, which was undoubtedly impressive. However, they used that block to praise him again for apparently being able to guard 1-5. They used that block to say he can apparently guard everyone on the floor from Tony Parker to Tim Duncan :oldlol: Blocking someone doesn't mean they were guarding them. Its as if Lebron was the first SF to ever block a center. Nate Robinson wasn't guarding Yao Ming when he blocked him. So, ummmm yea, overexaggerations like this definitely make his defense overrated.

[tpols]

that layup was against chalmers, and the 3 that he hit on lebron was a difficult shot. that was great defense by him, you cant get a much better result when defending tony parker than a step back, top of the key, 3 pointer. amazing defense, just better offense no shame in that defense.



quick question.

if rose and parker are that easy to stop, why are they both so consistently great? if anybody can shut them down, why doesnt it happen more often?



imo lebron is a little overrated as a man to man defender. but hes still very very good. you can criticise him for his defense on point guards, but at the end of the day, his defense on pgs is just gravy..
His defense on athletic slashing PGs for a handful of possessions at a time is gravy.. But all they need is a jumper and his defense becomes extremely average.. A liability even because he never presses and if he does he gets blown by.

Like 97bulls said, see Jason terry launching dagger threes in his eye in the 2011 finals.. See paul george raining threes on him.. Anyone that can shoot somewhat well can burn him.

What Lebron did to Tony Parker and Derrick Rose in the playoffs is the same exact thing Phil made kobe do against westbrook and Rondo in the 2010 playoffs. He put a big guard on these smaller players and dared them to shoot having kobe only shade the painted area.. The space they were accustomed to scoring from the most. Once their easy option was taken away it messed with their games.

That stuff doesn't mean kobe was a great defender.. It was just a switch up in defensive strategy for a burst to throw a scorer off their game.

[dh144498]

TonyMontana?

[tmacattack33]

I was listening to ESPN radio the other day and they were raving about Lebron's block on Duncan in game 6, which was undoubtedly impressive. However, they used that block to praise him again for apparently being able to guard 1-5. They used that block to say he can apparently guard everyone on the floor from Tony Parker to Tim Duncan :oldlol: Blocking someone doesn't mean they were guarding them. Its as if Lebron was the first SF to ever block a center. Nate Robinson wasn't guarding Yao Ming when he blocked him. So, ummmm yea, overexaggerations like this definitely make his defense overrated.

Except that he guarded Duncan in the post a good number of times in the earlier parts of this series.

And he was on David West for whole quarters at a time in the ECF.

[tmacattack33]

Great post. Notice how it gets no response. LeBron James defense is overrated. I've never seen a pkayer get so much credit for defending a player for a possession. And then, its not really him having to get up in a players face. All he has to do is baxk off them. Why didnt he stop Jason Terry? Kevin Durant avg 30 on 50% shooting. Paul George had multiple 30 pt games against him.

That post was not so great.

He said Lebron guarded an "otherwise struggling and injured Tony Parker", which is not a true statement at all, as evident in the fact that Tony Parker was schooling Mario Chalmers (average PG defender) and Norris Cole (an exceptional PG defender) throughout this series.

[TheReal Kendall]

Except that he guarded Duncan in the post a good number of times in the earlier parts of this series.

And he was on David West for whole quarters at a time in the ECF.

:coleman:

[diamenz]

TonyMontana?

fapping in 'heat interior play' thread.

[guy]

Except that he guarded Duncan in the post a good number of times in the earlier parts of this series.



I don't recall that unless you're talking about him getting switched onto him at times which happens all the time for players. I wouldn't call that him effectively guarding him on a regular basis.

[chazzy]

I was listening to ESPN radio the other day and they were raving about Lebron's block on Duncan in game 6, which was undoubtedly impressive. However, they used that block to praise him again for apparently being able to guard 1-5. They used that block to say he can apparently guard everyone on the floor from Tony Parker to Tim Duncan :oldlol: Blocking someone doesn't mean they were guarding them. Its as if Lebron was the first SF to ever block a center. Nate Robinson wasn't guarding Yao Ming when he blocked him. So, ummmm yea, overexaggerations like this definitely make his defense overrated.
Yeah the 1-5 stuff needs to stop. He'll pick up a big man for a couple possessions at a time, but your team wouldn't be good defensively if you have Lebron lined up as your center :oldlol: Imagine what Hibbert would do if Lebron tried to play post defense consistently.

[plowking]

Yeah the 1-5 stuff needs to stop. He'll pick up a big man for a couple possessions at a time, but your team wouldn't be good defensively if you have Lebron lined up as your center :oldlol: Imagine what Hibbert would do if Lebron tried to play post defense consistently.

Wouldn't have been any worse than what he already did to us. :oldlol:

[guy]

Yeah the 1-5 stuff needs to stop. He'll pick up a big man for a couple possessions at a time, but your team wouldn't be good defensively if you have Lebron lined up as your center :oldlol: Imagine what Hibbert would do if Lebron tried to play post defense consistently.

I don't have as much of a problem with them overexaggerating what he's doing as I do them overexaggerating what he's doing and acting like no one has ever done this before. Colin Cowherd the other day said something along the lines that Jordan never had to guard PGs back then. :wtf: Jordan actually had to switch onto PGs all the time. Even Kobe has been doing that. If Lebron was guarding 1-5, then so was Pippen and Rodman, and even Jordan guarded Divac in the 91 Finals in a similar fashion to what they praise Lebron for.

[secund2nun]

He shut down Melo? Melo was killing the Heat defense by himself except in one game:facepalm

Check the stats. Melo was killing Battier. When Lebron was on him he was shut down badly.

[Jacks3]

He said Lebron guarded an "otherwise struggling and injured Tony Parker", which is not a true statement at all, as evident in the fact that Tony Parker was schooling Mario Chalmers (average PG defender) and Norris Cole (an exceptional PG defender) throughout this series.
lol you LeBron stans and your lies.

Parker was struggling the entire series outside Games 1 and 5. Did you miss his mediocre performances in Games 2, 3, 4? He wasn't "schooling" anyone and was clearly not 100%.

Christ.

:facepalm

[97 bulls]

That post was not so great.

He said Lebron guarded an "otherwise struggling and injured Tony Parker", which is not a true statement at all, as evident in the fact that Tony Parker was schooling Mario Chalmers (average PG defender) and Norris Cole (an exceptional PG defender) throughout this series.
The premise of his post was still great. James cant defend against a player with a strong jumper. And he doesnt defend guys for games, he does it for possessions. And its not really digging in on a guy and shutting them down. All he does is just take a step or two back and dare the player to take a jump shot.

Id even go so.far to say his teammates role is more important in that situation cuz they must be ready to help, then get back to their man on kickouts. People act like James is picking guys up 90 feet. Its just not true

[LeBird]

It's getting to the stage that unless Lebron shuts down all 5 players at once then he will never get the credit his versatility deserves.

[97 bulls]

It's getting to the stage that unless Lebron shuts down all 5 players at once then he will never get the credit his versatility deserves.
I give him credit. If he wasnt the athlete he is, he woulldnt be able to D-up guys. But people are acting as if he literraly picks up full court pressure defense, then get in players grill and defies them from driveing past him. Its not true.

[guy]

It's getting to the stage that unless Lebron shuts down all 5 players at once then he will never get the credit his versatility deserves.

And as I said, it's getting to the stage that blocking someone's shot qualifies as "guarding" them. I have no idea what you're talking about that he doesn't get as much credit as he deserves. His versatility is very unique and deserves alot of credit but its definitely been getting overstated.

[plowking]

A whole collection of Lebron defensive plays (20 mins) from the 2011-2012 playoffs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEs7bZzprWU

[chips93]

His defense on athletic slashing PGs for a handful of possessions at a time is gravy.. But all they need is a jumper and his defense becomes extremely average.. A liability even because he never presses and if he does he gets blown by.

tony parker doesnt have a jumper? what year is this? 2006? parker is one of the best mid range shooters in the league


Like 97bulls said, see Jason terry launching dagger threes in his eye in the 2011 finals.. See paul george raining threes on him.. Anyone that can shoot somewhat well can burn him.

good scorers are gonna get theirs at some point in a series. you cant lock up good scorers, for 6 or 7 games in a row. in like 3 years there are really just a handful of examples like these of bron getting light up. and even then, lebron locked up george in game 7, and for the series he averaged a 19 a game. thats nice output for george, nut nothing crazy.

and for terry, he held him in check for 4 games, and got light up the last 2.

in 3 years, these are the big cases of lebron getting exposed?


What Lebron did to Tony Parker and Derrick Rose in the playoffs is the same exact thing Phil made kobe do against westbrook and Rondo in the 2010 playoffs. He put a big guard on these smaller players and dared them to shoot having kobe only shade the painted area.. The space they were accustomed to scoring from the most. Once their easy option was taken away it messed with their games.

rondo counts as a scorer?

the 'switching it up' point is a very valid one though, i will admit.

[chips93]

The premise of his post was still great. James cant defend against a player with a strong jumper. And he doesnt defend guys for games, he does it for possessions. And its not really digging in on a guy and shutting them down. All he does is just take a step or two back and dare the player to take a jump shot.

Id even go so.far to say his teammates role is more important in that situation cuz they must be ready to help, then get back to their man on kickouts. People act like James is picking guys up 90 feet. Its just not true

you cant really just critique how he gets it done, all that matters is that he does get it done.

what difference does it make how he defends, so long as he helps his team on defense?

[PickernRoller]

Only people that think that are Kobe stans....:facepalm

[97 bulls]

you cant really just critique how he gets it done, all that matters is that he does get it done.

what difference does it make how he defends, so long as he helps his team on defense?
Its effective against those type of players cuz they want to drive to the basket. Why didnt he do that against Terry in 2011?

By the way. Heres what I stated in post 93 in this thread.




I give him credit. If he wasnt the athlete he is, he woulldnt be able to D-up guys. But people are acting as if he literraly picks up full court pressure defense, then get in players grill and defies them from driveing past him. Its not true.

[Electric Slide]

He shut down Melo? Melo was killing the Heat defense by himself except in one game:facepalm
I forgot that for Melo's standard, killing someone is shooting over 30%.

[97 bulls]

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=3&ved=0CEEQtwIwAg&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DpBc ZbKvVknI&ei=GXfIUfT-LIe89gST44HgCQ&usg=AFQjCNEB4Fhph0OpiElhvqJE2GYENQGQzg&sig2=sQQ7yNFtl4t-pnXNeGKqcw


https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CDsQtwIwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DN9v FHYVXtRk&ei=M3jIUc6QLIHc8ATmhoCgAQ&usg=AFQjCNHCTnxZblzzLPm6fL5P7ibXqQlCIA&sig2=976ZXsbC60Iu76s3qp60cQ


As a point of emphasis, here is a highlight video of both James and Pippen on defense. Notice the difference. Pippen is literally manning up full court 90 feet. Fighting guys like Ewing, Barkley, Larry Johnson, in the post. Not just daring them to shoot the ball by backing off them.

In the James video, pay close attention to how he plays Rose, and Aaron Brooks. Hes just laying off them.whats more, a large portion of the clip is James defense on Durant. Durant shot well over 50% and avg 30ppg vs James.

[KG215]

Did everyone just forget OKC employed the same strategy against the Spurs after games 1 and 2 by putting Sefolosha on Parker? Parker had just gone off for 34 points on 15/21 shooting in game 2. Last four games he had 16 points, 12 points, 20 points, and 29 points. The 29 point game he needed 27 shots to get there. He also had two games with 5 turnovers in that time. Averaged 19 PPG the last 4 games but on 40% shooting.

Point being, people are aware coaches/teams have employed this strategy on Tony Parker before this year, and had success, right?

[PickernRoller]

Did everyone just forget OKC employed the same strategy against the Spurs after games 1 and 2 by putting Sefolosha on Parker? Parker had just gone off for 34 points on 15/21 shooting in game 2. Last four games he had 16 points, 12 points, 20 points, and 29 points. The 29 point game he needed 27 shots to get there. He also had two games with 5 turnovers in that time. Averaged 19 PPG the last 4 games but on 40% shooting.

Point being, people are aware coaches/teams have employed this strategy on Tony Parker before this year, and had success, right?

No Lebron is GOAT.


It's getting to the stage that unless Lebron shuts down all 5 players at once then he will never get the credit his versatility deserves.

This.

[jdiaby]

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=3&ved=0CEEQtwIwAg&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DpBc ZbKvVknI&ei=GXfIUfT-LIe89gST44HgCQ&usg=AFQjCNEB4Fhph0OpiElhvqJE2GYENQGQzg&sig2=sQQ7yNFtl4t-pnXNeGKqcw


https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CDsQtwIwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DN9v FHYVXtRk&ei=M3jIUc6QLIHc8ATmhoCgAQ&usg=AFQjCNHCTnxZblzzLPm6fL5P7ibXqQlCIA&sig2=976ZXsbC60Iu76s3qp60cQ


As a point of emphasis, here is a highlight video of both James and Pippen on defense. Notice the difference. Pippen is literally manning up full court 90 feet. Fighting guys like Ewing, Barkley, Larry Johnson, in the post. Not just daring them to shoot the ball by backing off them.

In the James video, pay close attention to how he plays Rose, and Aaron Brooks. Hes just laying off them.whats more, a large portion of the clip is James defense on Durant. Durant shot well over 50% and avg 30ppg vs James.

This post should be the end of the thread
James is good defender, is man defense is vastly overrated. Although I will give him created I am very impressed with his fronting/post defense on power forwards.

[Lebron23]

Shutdown Pau George in the last 2 games of the conference finals. He derrick Rose'd Tony Parker in the Finals. Parker is now kicking some major @$$ in the Eurobasket.

[ILLsmak]

I believe that everything about LeBron is overrated. It just depends on the person who is talking. People tend to gush about the best player in the same way they did with Lebron or with Kobe. People are now saying LOL KOBE WASNT THAT GOOD AT D. Which is true, and I imagine sooner or later people will come down to earth on the LeBron thing, too.

I think Bron is an all-nba type defender. Maybe first team, maybe 2nd team... but people act like he's a DPOY and I don't think he is. The truth is that he likely will win it at some point because if you're as good as he is, if you play REALLY WELL on D, people will remember it more than say... Iggy or Tony Allen. Or some of the bigs that make great impact.

Dudes just don't understand D here. I've seen so many players say that PG defense is not important haha. But of course Bron gets props for playing great D on a PG.

-Smak

[j3lademaster]

What Lebron did to Tony Parker and Derrick Rose in the playoffs is the same exact thing Phil made kobe do against westbrook and Rondo in the 2010 playoffs. He put a big guard on these smaller players and dared them to shoot having kobe only shade the painted area.. The space they were accustomed to scoring from the most. Once their easy option was taken away it messed with their games. Do you realize you're comparing Last year's Tony Parker and MVP Rose to Rondo and 20 year old Westbrook as scorers?

[Gwin631]

Lebron's defense is great and no one is questioning it. It becomes overrated when some fans claim he is DPOY or one of the best defenders All-time, now thats an exaggeration :lol

What concerns Parker, LBJ no doubt did a good job on him, but lets keep it in the perspective - Parker wasnt 100% healthy, and Lebron is like 6 inches taller. If LBJ wouldnt have done great job on him in these circumstances, he would be pretty crappy defender :D
But that's the point, LeBron is 6 inches taller yet he still is as fast as Parker, 6'8 guys shouldn't do that

[Greg Oden 50]

Shut down Tony Parker 2 straight games.:oldlol:

He has more impact on defense than a peak Jordan, yes I said it.
Do people still believe LeBron's defense is overrated?

YES....I'm here :rockon:

DUN COMPARE LEFLOP TO JORDAN..........NOT EVEN CLOSE,MJ IS 10 TIMES BETTER HAN LEFLOP EVER BEEN,LEBROn IS SO GD BECOS HE PLAY IN A ERA WITH NO BIG MAN

[Greg Oden 50]

But that's the point, LeBron is 6 inches taller yet he still is as fast as Parker, 6'8 guys shouldn't do that

AS FAST AS AN INJIRED PARKER :facepalm

[Gwin631]

No, as fast as an uninjured Parker, especially late in the series, anyways, he also have lockdown D rose in 2011 and slowed KD in 2012, so if you are not convinced go back to those playoff games and check them out...

Please Greg Oden, no need to hate, just �� LeBron, and life will get better!

[tpols]

Do you realize you're comparing Last year's Tony Parker and MVP Rose to Rondo and 20 year old Westbrook as scorers?
Look up mvp Derrick roses shooting in the rounds before Lebron saw him. His efficiency dipped like crazy in the playoffs before the Bulls even played Miami. And the difference between Parker and westbrook/Rondo isn't all that much for the respective years were talking about.

Westbrook was 20 years old... But he was still absolutely torching LA before the switch was made. Westbrook biggest strength was and still is his scoring. Similarly Rondo was shitting on the Cavs and other eastern teams with his slashing and finishing. People forget I guess.. But there was a while where nobody could stop Rondo from two stepping his way into the paint and finishing with English over and over.

2010 Rondo and 2013 Parker are very similar impact players and they're both elite finishers slashers who don't prefer to shoot the ball from range. The comparison is perfectly fine