Lebron says he could averge 35-40 ppg if he really wanted too

[juju151111]

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/9824909/lebron-james-michael-jordan-fear-failure-35-point-games-more-espn-magazine

He says he would be tired through for 40ppg, but think he could comfortable average 35ppg.

[Joey3000]

yeah, all he gotta do is chuck.

[TheReal Kendall]

I don't see it happening.

This the same dude the Spurs gave 5 feet and dared him to shoot.

His jumper is suspect.

[#number6ix#]

He would have to chuck his heart out to reach 35ppg... I think he could've back in 2009 though

[kuniva_dAMiGhTy]

Possibly. Doubt he'd be very efficient though.

[BoutPractice]

Of course. So could Durant, Melo, etc. The question is: at what cost?

[HomieWeMajor]

on 35-40 % Watch Pauk take the bait

[9erempiree]

I doubt it.

This is the same guy who's pretty much mentally weak and we can all agree to this. The Spurs also dared him to shoot. He won't be averaging anything close to that.

[It's A VC3!!!]

I could say 31-35 right now, but not 40. I'm not going to look it up right now but I believe that Kobe averaged like 28 shot attempts in his 35 PPG year. LeBron is definitely not going to chuck 28+ shots per game to achieve a scoring title.

[juju151111]

Possibly. Doubt he'd be very efficient though.
He averaged 31 on 48% at 21. I can see him getting 35 on 46-49%.

[SamuraiSWISH]

Not on the Heat. Not with the amount of talent he has on his team, and how they blow teams out.

Not with his current first step, and not as impressive explosion or finishing ability. He gets a ton of points in transition now. Super cherry picks FG attempts.

With his diminished athletic abilities, he plays smarter, but not near as dynamic or explosive. He's never been a guy scoring off incredible footwork, and offensive scoring skill set like MJ showcased at 33, 34, 35, 38, 39 and 40, or Kobe at 32, 33 and 34.

He'd have to chuck, his FG% and efficiency would decrease dramatically. 40 is absolutely out of the question.

LeBron said he could get 35 ppg, which I believe he could plausibly under the right conditions.

Chris Boussard, arguably as big of a LeBron nut gobbler as ISH's own: pauk, NumberSix, RG, secundtonone, KingwillBall, plowking, aj1987, madmax, Hoopenumber1fan ... egged him on to say 40 ppg.

He would not be able to do that, even on a bad team. He just doesn't have the scoring skill set for that, and without his athleticism he had from 2006 - 2010, he's not even coming close.

[kuniva_dAMiGhTy]

He averaged 31 on 48% at 21. I can see him getting 35 on 46-49%.

Maybe. 35-40 and maintaining good efficiency is another ballgame.

[juju151111]

In the weak 80s-90s? sure. Today.. I don't think so.


Part of what makes LeBron such a dangerous scorer, aside from his insane level IQ, athleticism and (recently) his shooting is his passing. I feel if he goes all-out scoring mode he'll be far more predictable and teams would be able to zone in on him a lot more. Teams force great scorers to pass and great passers to score.. LeBron is in that healthy medium which makes him far more dangerous and efficient.
Man sit your dumbass down.

[secund2nun]

Lebron could hit 40 if he took enough shots, but he is not a low IQ player like that so low IQ fans would not understand.

Btw Lebron has dropped 10 pounds recently.

[CelticBaller]

I can see him doing that, he used to avg 31 pts while begin double teamed every game

[daily]

Maybe. 35-40 and maintaining good efficiency is another ballgame.

Yep, you go into that mode and you become the only focus of the defense. One of his great attributes and the thing that allows him to shoot at his current rate is his willingness to give up the ball. Take that option away and the defense circles the wagons

[ispin69]

But he won't because he knows basketball is a team sport.

Meanwhile, Kobe chucks and goes for a 100 against the lowly raptors and only gets 81pts. Destroys all the team building. Losers in the first round every year.

[juju151111]

Maybe. 35-40 and maintaining good efficiency is another ballgame.
I don't think he could do it know. He lost some athleticism, but in 09 with a greenlight to shoot all the time might be able to do it. LJ was jumping from the ft line in game. I think it's easier for players to do it when they are young and full of energy. Like 24-27 age range.

[SamuraiSWISH]

Btw Lebron has dropped 10 pounds recently.
Source, or link?

If he has, that would help his first step and legs. Going to 4 straight Finals, and then attempting to to go to 5 finals, winning 4 would be so stressful on your legs.

LeBron has played in the most games the past 3 seasons out of the entire league.

But to the point, in essence it's not in LeBron's nature, mentality, or even really the dimensions of his game or skill set to even have the ability to do this. It's out of the question.

I think on a really bad team, selfishly focusing on scoring and nothing else, the following players could do it:

MJ in his prime on a bad team, think 1990, 1991, 1992, or 1993 model could do it. He'd put up 40 ppg on 45% FG.

Durant in this soft era, with a bad team and no Westbrook, while completely gunning could possibly do it.

[secund2nun]

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/mario-chalmers-joins-dwyane-wade-lebron-james-losing-164924640--nba.html

Ray Allen has the right diet idea, but if I could meet Miami I would tell them to go on a raw paleo diet instead of cooked paleo.

[aj1987]

Not with his current first step, and not as impressive explosion or finishing ability. He gets a ton of points in transition now. Super cherry picks FG attempts.
Watch the games before you post.:facepalm


He'd have to chuck, his FG% and efficiency would decrease dramatically. 40 is absolutely out of the question.
He's averaging 27 on 56/40. I'm pretty sure that he can score 35 on 50/35. He actually scored 31.4 on 48% at 21.


Chris Boussard, arguably as big of a LeBron nut gobbler as ISH's own: pauk, NumberSix, RG, secundtonone, KingwillBall, plowking, aj1987, madmax, Hoopenumber1fan ... egged him on to say 40 ppg.
I'm a Lebron stan? :oldlol:

[SamuraiSWISH]

Watch the games before you post.:facepalm
Umm, I do are you watching them?

LeBron is transition bucket KING now. Same with semi transition baskets with HIGH pick and rolls where he gets a head of steam and barrels into the lane. He is always using picks to score. It's rare that he doesn't. It's unusual to see him score on a true ISO play.

This dude isn't jab stepping, triple threating, abusing players in the post with footwork / fades and step back jumpers. What are you watching, man?


He's averaging 27 on 56/40. I'm pretty sure that he can score 35 on 50/35. He actually scored 31.4 on 48% at 21.
He averaged 31 in 2006 because of the soft ass rule changes. Everyone saw a major spike in PPG output. Iverson suddenly had a HUGE resurgence and actually put up better numbers than when he was at his peak in his MVP season 5 years previous. It's not rocket science.

The very next season he dropped 4 ppg.

I think he can score 35 ppg, I said that. His efficiency would drop no doubt. Are you fully reading what I type? I said 40 ppg is absolutely out of the question. It's not in his game, DNA, makeup, mentality or skills.


I'm a Lebron stan? :oldlol:
I like you, but yea I think you're a LeBron stan.

[TheReturn]

You read that entire interview and that's all you got from it?

Thanks for posting it anyways, I found it very interesting. And if you really want to discuss that tiny detail.. I believe he could average 35 if he wanted to on decent efficiency, 40 would be very hard.

[juju151111]

You read that entire interview and that's all you got from it?

Thanks for posting it anyways, I found it very interesting. And if you really want to discuss that tiny detail.. I believe he could average 35 if he wanted to on decent efficiency, 40 would be very hard.
Yes it is and you don't have to click on the thread if you don't want to discuss it.

[fpliii]

:confusedshrug:

Don't see why not. As he said though, might not be the best for his team.

[russwest0]

Watch the games before you post.:facepalm


He's averaging 27 on 56/40. I'm pretty sure that he can score 35 on 50/35. He actually scored 31.4 on 48% at 21.


I'm a Lebron stan? :oldlol:

LeBron dickslobberer detected

[LA_Showtime]

Come to LA, LeBron. You can play in our system and put up 35 easily. You probably won't win any more championships, though. Oh, and you'll have to compete with Kobe for shots (good luck with that).

[pauk]

He averages up to 8.6 APG (while still putting in up to 30 PPG), thats up to 41.8% AST%, that is up to some seasons of Chris Paul AST% territory.... thats alot of offensive possessions "wasted" on passing instead of being agressive trying to score.... not sure how much PPG he would average but its perfectly logical to believe he would definitely average more if he traded those offensive possessions with shots of his own.... Its not like his assists are forced due to bad situations which means it would have been bad shots if he shot instead of passed instead... no.... its just the passing/vision he has & unselfishness, he can hand out assists with one bad defender guarding him all the time by lazer beaming/threading the needle assists allover the place, its all natural as it is his role aswell as a point-forward..... all he needs is to trade that with a score-first mindset instead and preferably not care about the outcome of the game / alienate his teammates....

But it is this current Lebron his current game that made him and his teams this successful.... him chucking shots dropping crazy PTS would be kewl for the kids, but not for the outcome of the game.... definitely not the game i want him to play either lol, hell i want the complete opposite, i want Lebron to play PG and go for highest APG, be the next Magic... **** MJ :D

[aj1987]

Umm, I do are you watching them?

LeBron is transition bucket KING now. Same with semi transition baskets with HIGH pick and rolls where he gets a head of steam and barrels into the lane. He is always using picks to score. It's rare that he doesn't. It's unusual to see him score on a true ISO play.

This dude isn't jab stepping, triple threating, abusing players in the post with footwork / fades and step back jumpers. What are you watching, man?
He doesn't get the majority of his points from fast break opportunities though. He scored over 40% of points from 10 feet and beyond. This does not include the points that he scored in the post from floaters, turn around jumpers, etc. If I'm not mistaken, he scored over 50% points off of jumpers alone. You should read this (http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/9109245/how-lebron-james-transformed-game-become-highly-efficient-scoring-machine).


He averaged 31 in 2006 because of the soft ass rule changes. Everyone saw a major spike in PPG output. Iverson suddenly had a HUGE resurgence and actually put up better numbers than when he was at his peak in his MVP season 5 years previous. It's not rocket science.
How about 30 on 50% in '10? While taking 3 less shots than he did in '06.


The very next season he dropped 4 ppg.
Along with a drop in FGA.


I think he can score 35 ppg, I said that. His efficiency would drop no doubt. Are you fully reading what I type? I said 40 ppg is absolutely out of the question. It's not in his game, DNA, makeup, mentality or skills.
This is a hypothetical though. If he actually wanted to score over 35 PPG, can he? If he didn't care about involving his teammates and winning, etc.


I like you, but yea I think you're a LeBron stan.
Far from it. Unlike those guys, I don't have Lebron in top 10 nor do I consider him to be better than Kobe. There's not much else going on ISH except Lebron vs Jordan/Kobe/Bird/Magic/Durant/etc. so I'm posting in a lot of his topics. I do however believe that he's a better scorer than Kobe, a great (not one of the best) defender, and not a "coward" for joining his "Pippen".

I'm a Wade stan, btw.



LeBron dickslobberer detected
It is true that you Westbrick fans have a combined IQ that is less than his FG%.

[Nash]

Of course he could. Lebron averaged 31.4 ppg @48% in his 3rd year in the league. Now he's averaging 27 ppg on 56% and is so much better player. If he went to chuck mode and made about 45% of his field goals he could easily average around 37 or 38 ppg.

Also obviously no assists and wasting energy on defence.

[lakerspng]

that would be a ridiculous sight to behold.

LeBron, being LeBron could never average 40 points a game and resemble anywhere close to the player he's always been.

He simply does not have the diversity in his offensive arsenal to do that and doesn't play that way. He plays with a conscience, which is sometimes a benefit and sometimes a detriment.

Stupid response to a more stupid question.

[DukeDelonte13]

30-33ppg no question.

[gts]

He averages up to 8.6 APG (while still putting in up to 30 PPG), thats up to 41.8% AST%,

He only averaged that high in ASST% once otherwise he's about 33%. That being said if he becomes a scorer first and takes the passing out of his game he becomes the focus of the defense. 35 ppg would be doable 40 ppg would be a stretch.

It wouldn't be very pretty ball and would be counter to the very thing that makes Lebron so dangerous.

[Trollsmasher]

In the weak 80s-90s? sure. Today.. I don't think so.


Part of what makes LeBron such a dangerous scorer, aside from his insane level IQ, athleticism and (recently) his shooting is his passing. I feel if he goes all-out scoring mode he'll be far more predictable and teams would be able to zone in on him a lot more. Teams force great scorers to pass and great passers to score.. LeBron is in that healthy medium which makes him far more dangerous and efficient.
Finally someone reversing the 80s-90s retards:lol :applause:

[tpols]

He only averaged that high in ASST% once otherwise he's about 33%. That being said if he becomes a scorer first and takes the passing out of his game he becomes the focus of the defense. 35 ppg would be doable 40 ppg would be a stretch.

It wouldn't be very pretty ball and would be counter to the very thing that makes Lebron so dangerous.
It would take the ultimate feat in ballhoggery for Lebron to average 40ppg.. He already dominates the ball like no one to ever play the game before.. the only way he could get up the 5+ extra shots necessary to hit that mark is if he took away from his assists.. theres no option for him to average 40/8. Hes already capped out at how much he can handle the ball right now.


if Lebron is going to cut his passing in half on top of pounding the air out of the ball all game... his teammates will be completely frozen out.

[Doranku]

Watch the games before you post.:facepalm


He's averaging 27 on 56/40. I'm pretty sure that he can score 35 on 50/35. He actually scored 31.4 on 48% at 21.


I'm a Lebron stan? :oldlol:
:roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:

[EricGordon23]

I could see that happening as long as he doesn't pass as much.

[Droid101]

Put up or shut up.

[SilkkTheShocker]

Possibly. Doubt he'd be very efficient though.

Good Lord, you don't know s.hit about basketball. Just sit in the corner and stfu, son.

[SilkkTheShocker]

LeBron is a better scorer than Kobe.

Get over it.

[ProfessorMurder]

He also said he'd bring a championship to Cleveland... And win 8 titles with the Heat.

[TMT]

Was it a specific question asked to him or is this guy really that insecure with himself as a player.

[DaSeba5]

Was it a specific question asked to him or is this guy really that insecure with himself as a player.

He was asked

[plowking]

35-36ppg. Sure. Anything more? Nah.

[ripthekik]

He also said he'd bring a championship to Cleveland... And win 8 titles with the Heat.
:lol

He's the dude that said he's ready to shoot if Spurs play him the same way, before 2013 finals started. Guess what happened?

[SilkkTheShocker]

:lol

He's the dude that said he's ready to shoot if Spurs play him the same way, before 2013 finals started. Guess what happened?

What happened was he hit the game winning shot in game 7 to clinch the series. :oldlol:

[lakerspng]

LeBron is a better scorer than Kobe.

Get over it.

Even LeBron would laugh at that statement.

[ripthekik]

What happened was he hit the game winning shot in game 7 to clinch the series. :oldlol:
right after Ray allen saved him with that shot while he bricked and bricked and bricked for 5 games while being covered by Diaw. Oh, and he never hit a game winning shot, dont kid yourself. He hit the open shots while his team was up and he had no pressure.

[Fudge]

Man sit your dumbass down.
Nothing he said was wrong tho. :confusedshrug:

[KyleKong]

His jumper is suspect.

http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/NPtSojoUXdQzzidIoxsoSw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTUwMA--/http://l.yimg.com/os/publish-images/sports/2013-06-23/44b3e51d-d59d-4336-9f24-dbc3f3a0f9b4_LeBron_webgame7.gif

[ripthekik]

If I were to put all his bricks in the 2013 finals together, 1 gif probably wouldn't be enough. He had 1 decent shooting game, game 7. Before that he was choking and disappearing through quarters like it was 2011. Even some of his most loyal fans turned on him. :confusedshrug:

[LakersDaBEst]

he could suck my *** if he wants to too.

[KyleKong]

If I were to put all his bricks in the 2013 finals together, 1 gif probably wouldn't be enough. He had 1 decent shooting game, game 7. Before that he was choking and disappearing through quarters like it was 2011. Even some of his most loyal fans turned on him. :confusedshrug:

So he was choking until the game that was most important not to choke?

Word.

[Papaya Petee]

The guy averaged 30 PPG on 50% to go along with 8.6 APG and it's not considered his best season, no shit he could average 35 ppg.

35 PPG on 47% with 6 assists per game would be very realistic.

[ripthekik]

So he was choking until the game that was most important not to choke?

Word.
Yea.. so you think choking in the early stages of the finals mean nothing? Til the point where he almost lost and had to be rescued by Ray Allen? As long as he came out for the last game and played decent he's alright? All those choking and disappearances in the first few final games didn't matter?

Sums up the average lebron stan. :facepalm

[KyleKong]

Yea.. so you think choking in the early stages of the finals mean nothing? Til the point where he almost lost and had to be rescued by Ray Allen? As long as he came out for the last game and played decent he's alright? All those choking and disappearances in the first few final games didn't matter?

Sums up the average lebron stan. :facepalm

I'm just paraphrasing what you said. :cheers:

[aj1987]

Yea.. so you think choking in the early stages of the finals mean nothing?
'00, '04, '08, and Game 7 in '10.

[ripthekik]

'00, '04, '08, and Game 7 in '10.
Combine all of those and it won't even touch 2011.
Oh, and people usually forget this year or give him a pass for it.. but have you actually looked up his stats against the Spurs in his first final appearance? Atrocious.. he even shot below 30%. Look it up.

[Papaya Petee]

Combine all of those and it won't even touch 2011.
Oh, and people usually forget this year or give him a pass for it.. but have you actually looked up his stats against the Spurs in his first final appearance? Atrocious.. he even shot below 30%. Look it up.

LeBron in 2011- 18\7\7 on 47% shooting
Kobe in 2004- 22\4\4 on 39% shooting.

So basically LeBron was involved in more offence, rebounded better, and was more efficient from the field.

Kobe has never matched LeBrons 2013 Finals Numbers in any of his 7 appearances lol.

[ripthekik]

LeBron in 2011- 18\7\7 on 47% shooting
Kobe in 2004- 22\4\4 on 39% shooting.

So basically LeBron was involved in more offence, rebounded better, and was more efficient from the field.

Really? The guy that scored 8 points in 1 finals game? The guy that averaged something like 2 points in 4th quarters? The guy that went phantom- he was more involved in the offense, and That guy played better?

[HoopsFanNumero1]

Really? The guy that scored 8 points in 1 finals game? The guy that averaged something like 2 points in 4th quarters? The guy that went phantom- he was more involved in the offense, and That guy played better?

Stats don't lie. As bad as Lebron played, he was still better than Kobe in '04.

[aj1987]

Combine all of those and it won't even touch 2011.
Oh, and people usually forget this year or give him a pass for it.. but have you actually looked up his stats against the Spurs in his first final appearance? Atrocious.. he even shot below 30%. Look it up.
'00 - 16/5/4 on 41% TS
'01 - 25/8/6 on 50% TS
'04 - 23/3/4 on 46% TS
'08 - 26/5/5 on 50% TS
'10 - 6/24 shooting in Game 7 of the Finals.

Lebron in '11 - 18/7/7 on 54% TS
Lebron in '13 - 25/11/7 on 53% TS

[Trollsmasher]

'04 is easily the worst superstar performance in the history of NBA

I don't really get how many people forgot it.

[EnoughSaid]

If LeBron only focused on scoring night in and night out, I think you can say he'd realistically average around 37 points. Think about it. He averaged 27 and 8. Take those assists and let's say at least half of them resulted in 8 points or more. That's 35 ppg. He could definitely do it.

[3peated]

Not on the Heat. Not with the amount of talent he has on his team, and how they blow teams out.

Not with his current first step, and not as impressive explosion or finishing ability. He gets a ton of points in transition now. Super cherry picks FG attempts.

With his diminished athletic abilities, he plays smarter, but not near as dynamic or explosive. He's never been a guy scoring off incredible footwork, and offensive scoring skill set like MJ showcased at 33, 34, 35, 38, 39 and 40, or Kobe at 32, 33 and 34.

He'd have to chuck, his FG% and efficiency would decrease dramatically. 40 is absolutely out of the question.

LeBron said he could get 35 ppg, which I believe he could plausibly under the right conditions.

Chris Boussard, arguably as big of a LeBron nut gobbler as ISH's own: pauk, NumberSix, RG, secundtonone, KingwillBall, plowking, aj1987, madmax, Hoopenumber1fan ... egged him on to say 40 ppg.

He would not be able to do that, even on a bad team. He just doesn't have the scoring skill set for that, and without his athleticism he had from 2006 - 2010, he's not even coming close.

dude wtf is wrong with you? did u witness a slower and physically broken down lebron that no one else saw?

[ripthekik]

If LeBron only focused on scoring night in and night out, I think you can say he'd realistically average around 37 points. Think about it. He averaged 27 and 8. Take those assists and let's say at least half of them resulted in 8 points or more. That's 35 ppg. He could definitely do it.
basketball doesn't work like that.
When you go all out trying to score, the defense can play you in a way that tries to make you pass all the time and give you no open looks. The really good offensive players like Kobe still manage to score through a variety of moves. Lebron really doesn't have an offensive arsenal, he's like Dwight. Hell, I think something like 30% of his points come off the fastbreak. Kind of how like how dwight scores off putbacks and open dunks.

Point is, if he tries to go all out to score, he'll be easily stopped because the defense will focus on him, and he doesn't have that much footwork, offensive moves to skillfully score.

[SamuraiSWISH]

dude wtf is wrong with you? did u witness a slower and physically broken down lebron that no one else saw?
That's not what I'm saying. His first step in the half court is dramatically slower than pre 2011. His explosion towards the rim in the half court off the dribble is no where near where it once was. Same goes for his leaping ability. That's why we never saw him rise up over Hibbert and dunk, even though he had many chances. You don't see plays like when he posterized the entire Celtics squad anymore. LeBron now requires a full head of steam to get by his man, usually off a pick in order to take them off the dribble, or explode at the rim.

[TheMarkMadsen]

LeBron in 2011- 18\7\7 on 47% shooting
Kobe in 2004- 22\4\4 on 39% shooting.

So basically LeBron was involved in more offence, rebounded better, and was more efficient from the field.

Kobe has never matched LeBrons 2013 Finals Numbers in any of his 7 appearances lol.

Not that this makes Kobe look any better but..

If you really think Lebron in the 11 finals was more INVOLVED in the offense than Kobe in the 04 finals.. Then damn. I question wether you know what you're talking about

[Droid101]

Kobe has never matched LeBrons 2013 Finals Numbers in any of his 7 appearances lol.
Finals?

How about the real Finals of the early 2000's, the Western Conference Finals.

[Hoopz2332]

Lebron could avg 35 easily if he chucked some more. The year kobe avg 35ppg on 27 FGA's lebron avg a shade under 32ppg on 23 FGA's.

[Soundwave]

Averaging over 32 ppg in a season is incredibly exhausting, it's not just as simple as "chucking", you have to work your ass off to get your shot off in the NBA and take punishment getting hacked all the time for free throw attempts.

Over 82 games, it wears on a player, it's simply not that easy to pull off.

[Snoop_Cat]

Seriously? He used to average basically 30 a night for the longest time. He could (even more likely a few years back) certainly average 35 a night at a low 40's % clip.

[LA_Showtime]

That's not what I'm saying. His first step in the half court is dramatically slower than pre 2011. His explosion towards the rim in the half court off the dribble is no where near where it once was. Same goes for his leaping ability. That's why we never saw him rise up over Hibbert and dunk, even though he had many chances. You don't see plays like when he posterized the entire Celtics squad anymore. LeBron now requires a full head of steam to get by his man, usually off a pick in order to take them off the dribble, or explode at the rim.

I just think it's unbelievable how LeBron James is still the best athlete in the NBA and yet he's clearly not the same athlete he was 3-4 years ago. I'm not sure he has what it takes to be the GOAT, but he's definitely got a shot because he's got a body built for longevity.