Colin Cowerd says Lebron should either become a passer or scorer

[Walk on Water]

Coward says Lebron does too many things. (He doesn't play defense) And instead of being the teams scorer and facilitator, Lebron should focus on specializing. Either become Magic Johnson or just play small forward and focus on scoring and rebounding. It hurts the team when you try to do all of those things, because now the good players can't do their own thing. The role players can't do much anyways so it doesn't hurt them. But when you have other players good in one area, they can't compliment Lebron.

If he wants to focus on scoring, he should do that. Let the point guard have the ball. Otherwise, what's the point of even having a point guard? Jordan went through huge stretches of not touching the ball and could still score 30 points a game. And he still averaged a decent number of assists. He's not trying to be Magic.

If he wants to just facilitate, then he should move to point guard. It's better to be more specialized then to try to be both the scorer and the primary facilitator. It's even worse when you don't play a lick of defense. This is a team game. Everyone has roles. You do your roles, but stop trying to do other people's roles. The only way it would be acceptable is if Lebron literally became the point guard.

[Sakkreth]

Guy is an idiot. You shouldn't waste time on talking about his opinions.

[bullettooth]

Lebron should try becoming a winner.

https://s31.postimg.cc/kmc9n3cln/lebrondickrider.gif

[knicksman]

this is what weve been saying. Thats what jordan did. He only averaged 3 apg and 4 rpg. But look at the result. Coz he uses his teammates while focusing on what matters. Thats what separates winners from losers. They dont care about stats, they only care about wins. Lebron care so much about his stats so I doubt he would sacrifice that.

[coin24]

Lebron should try becoming a winner.

https://s31.postimg.cc/kmc9n3cln/lebrondickrider.gif


:lol :lol :applause:

[AirFederer]

Well to his defense Lebron just passed on the playoffs

[90sgoat]

I've said this for years.

Lebron should have modelled his game after Sir Charles.

Sir Charles was lazy and short, but at his peak, he was right up there with the best ever.

Lebron has better physical tools and when he did play the post, in Miami, he actually won (despite ugly and ineffective postgame).

30-10-6 should have been Lebron's statline for a decade.

[Elosha]

Lebron can't really become a pure scorer, b/c he's never had the skills to do so. He can't pull a Jordan, Kobe, or even Harden and pull off multiple 40-50 plus games, even in this watered down defensive era. He could never do so, even in his physical prime.

And honestly, that's what the Lakers need now. They are injured and discouraged. They need a dominant leader of Jordan or Kobe's ilk to put them on his back and say we aren't going to lose this game, the next game, or the game after that. LeBron can do that here and there for a game or two but he can never sustain it. He gets his points usually in the flow of the game, lots of fastbreaks, busted plays, easy finishes. But when scoring gets hard, he usually comes up short. Despite his "stats," he's really only a very good scorer, not a great one. And no way in hell he's going to start now at age 34.

[ronniec]

Well, Colin Cowherd just figured that out while we all knew that 10+ years ago???

[LAL]

I've said this for years.

Lebron should have modelled his game after Sir Charles.

Sir Charles was lazy and short, but at his peak, he was right up there with the best ever.

Lebron has better physical tools and when he did play the post, in Miami, he actually won (despite ugly and ineffective postgame).

30-10-6 should have been Lebron's statline for a decade.
I would say 27-13-4

[Phoenix]

If you go back to 2003, and if I'm wrong blame the rum, I recall alot of the pre-draft discussions saying that they expected Lebron's statlines to resemble prime Magic's. In other words, more of a 23/11/7 type player. I don't recall people projecting he'd be a 27-30ppg guy in various seasons. And that's kind of the conundrum with Lebron. For what he has done, you have to wonder if being a swiss army knife instead of really being a modern day, athletic Magic( which I think suits his temperament and nature best) or even a premium version of 94 Pippen, ultimately put him in a pigeon hole where he is successful only with 'certain' playstyles and 'certain' types of players. He placed himself somewhere between Magic and MJ as a scorer, and somewhere between MJ and Magic as a passer.

[LAL]

If you go back to 2003, and if I'm wrong blame the rum, I recall alot of the pre-draft discussions saying that they expected Lebron's statlines to resemble prime Magic's. In other words, more of a 23/11/7 type player. I don't recall people projecting he'd be a 27-30ppg guy in various seasons. And that's kind of the conundrum with Lebron. For what he has done, you have to wonder if being a swiss army knife instead of really being a modern day, athletic Magic( which I think suits his temperament and nature best) or even a premium version of 94 Pippen, ultimately put him in a pigeon hole where he is successful only with 'certain' playstyles and 'certain' types of players. He placed himself somewhere between Magic and MJ as a scorer, and somewhere between MJ and Magic as a passer.
Great stats, ordinary player.

[90sgoat]

I would say 27-13-4

You're right.

A better passing Karl Malone or a Malone/Barkley hybrid with elite defense. That would have made him a force.

[Elosha]

I've said this for years.

Lebron should have modelled his game after Sir Charles.

Sir Charles was lazy and short, but at his peak, he was right up there with the best ever.

Lebron has better physical tools and when he did play the post, in Miami, he actually won (despite ugly and ineffective postgame).

30-10-6 should have been Lebron's statline for a decade.

Agree on your general point, but I don't know if LeBron ever had the mentality or skills to score 30 points a game or even get 10 rebounds a game. He doesn't work hard enough on offensive boards and I don't think he could average 30 points consistently for multiple season no matter what position he plays. At PF, he's still got mediocre post skills and relies on fast breaks and open court basketball for a good percentage of his points. To be fair in open court, he's arguably the greatest of all time. It's half court ball where he breaks down. He doesn't have truly elite scoring skills from any position, just very good ones.

If LeBron had truly committed to playing PF for most of his career, I think he'd average 25-26 ppg, 9-10 boards, and 5-6 assists. His teams would be more balanced and he may have won more championships. But I really think he'd refuse to play that way for long, as he'd not be nearly as ball dominant, and that's his preferred play style.

[warriorfan]

This thread is in direct violation of ISH

[PJR]

Bran can

[FKAri]

Lebron can't really become a pure scorer, b/c he's never had the skills to do so. He can't pull a Jordan, Kobe, or even Harden and pull off multiple 40-50 plus games, even in this watered down defensive era. He could never do so, even in his physical prime.

And honestly, that's what the Lakers need now. They are injured and discouraged. They need a dominant leader of Jordan or Kobe's ilk to put them on his back and say we aren't going to lose this game, the next game, or the game after that. LeBron can do that here and there for a game or two but he can never sustain it. He gets his points usually in the flow of the game, lots of fastbreaks, busted plays, easy finishes. But when scoring gets hard, he usually comes up short. Despite his "stats," he's really only a very good scorer, not a great one. And no way in hell he's going to start now at age 34.
:applause: :applause: :applause:

[bizil]

If you go back to 2003, and if I'm wrong blame the rum, I recall alot of the pre-draft discussions saying that they expected Lebron's statlines to resemble prime Magic's. In other words, more of a 23/11/7 type player. I don't recall people projecting he'd be a 27-30ppg guy in various seasons. And that's kind of the conundrum with Lebron. For what he has done, you have to wonder if being a swiss army knife instead of really being a modern day, athletic Magic( which I think suits his temperament and nature best) or even a premium version of 94 Pippen, ultimately put him in a pigeon hole where he is successful only with 'certain' playstyles and 'certain' types of players. He placed himself somewhere between Magic and MJ as a scorer, and somewhere between MJ and Magic as a passer.

Well said! People forget that Bron's 1st primary position in the league was at PG. The Cavs had Ricky Davis at the SG and Darius Miles at SF. But before u know it, Bron was contending for scoring titles his 2nd season. And his thought process was more like the Big O than Magic. Which was a pass first player WHO also averages 27-30 PPG. And was a premier triple double threat on top of it. When u think about it, Bron and Big O are the only two players like that in NBA history in terms of that thought process. The difference is Big O played pretty much exclusive at the PG. While Bron played all over the place and took advantage of his epic versatility.

If another dominant scorer joins up with Bron (like a KD or AD), then I think he could fall back into a Magic type of role. Get 23/11/7 type numbers WHILE those guys lead the team in scoring. So the scoring goes down some while the assists could go up. He's at the stage of his career where he needs to pace himself IF he wants to still be considered the best in the world. Or at least a top 5 caliber player in the world.

And for those DOUBTING Bron's scoring ability LMAO!!! He never had the most complete scoring skillset. BUT dude is over 30,000 points! And averages 27 PPG for his career! He's a PHENOMENAL SCORER! He just did it from a pass first mindset. So as he ages, it makes more sense to TAP INTO his passing ability. ESPECIALLY is he wants dominant and younger players to join him!

[HylianNightmare]

It's too late

[Mr.GOAT2408]

He needs to embrace his inner Karl Malone and just operate in the post, stop being in the perimeter and stop being the primary ball handler

[Phoenix]

Well said! People forget that Bron's 1st primary position in the league was at PG. The Cavs had Ricky Davis at the SG and Darius Miles at SF. But before u know it, Bron was contending for scoring titles his 2nd season. And his thought process was more like the Big O than Magic. Which was a pass first player WHO also averages 27-30 PPG. And was a premier triple double threat on top of it. When u think about it, Bron and Big O are the only two players like that in NBA history in terms of that thought process. The difference is Big O played pretty much exclusive at the PG. While Bron played all over the place and took advantage of his epic versatility.

If another dominant scorer joins up with Bron (like a KD or AD), then I think he could fall back into a Magic type of role. Get 23/11/7 type numbers WHILE those guys lead the team in scoring. So the scoring goes down some while the assists could go up. He's at the stage of his career where he needs to pace himself IF he wants to still be considered the best in the world. Or at least a top 5 caliber player in the world.

And for those DOUBTING Bron's scoring ability LMAO!!! He never had the most complete scoring skillset. BUT dude is over 30,000 points! And averages 27 PPG for his career! He's a PHENOMENAL SCORER! He just did it from a pass first mindset. So as he ages, it makes more sense to TAP INTO his passing ability. ESPECIALLY is he wants dominant and younger players to join him!

I think this 'should' have been the year he finally ceded being the number one everything on a team had someone like Paul George( who is obviously at his apex right now) joined the Lakers. Let Lebron fall back to 32-35 minutes a night, scale the numbers down to something like 23/9/7 and get down in the post more to 'rest' on offense. He'd have been better off and I believe so would the Lakers. I think we're at the point now where SOMEONE other than Lebron needs to be your go-to scorer and, as you suggest, that's where his 'swiss knife' skillset can be utilized to full effect and not compromise other parts of his game( like defense) because so much energy is currently devoted to being the offense. This ain't 2013 Bron, those days are long gone.

[bizil]

I think this 'should' have been the year he finally ceded being the number one everything on a team had someone like Paul George( who is obviously at his apex right now) joined the Lakers. Let Lebron fall back to 32-35 minutes a night, scale the numbers down to something like 23/9/7 and get down in the post more to 'rest' on offense. He'd have been better off and I believe so would the Lakers. I think we're at the point now where SOMEONE other than Lebron needs to be your go-to scorer and, as you suggest, that's where his 'swiss knife' skillset can be utilized to full effect and not compromise other parts of his game( like defense) because so much energy is currently devoted to being the offense. This ain't 2013 Bron, those days are long gone.

Yep the Lakers front office made a mistake not going all in on George. And just assuming he would walk over to the Lakers. This the version of PG that I've been waiting for. He upped the ante in scoring in such a way that he's the best two way player in the world now. He's now LEGIT an alpha dog level scorer now. He's the kind of superstar that Bron could defer to scoring wise.

[sammichoffate]

He needs to embrace his inner Karl Malone and just operate in the post, stop being in the perimeter and stop being the primary ball handlerHis post game sucks. He could be a good PnR roll target but he wants to hang onto the ball 24/7.

[FKAri]

Well said! People forget that Bron's 1st primary position in the league was at PG. The Cavs had Ricky Davis at the SG and Darius Miles at SF. But before u know it, Bron was contending for scoring titles his 2nd season. And his thought process was more like the Big O than Magic. Which was a pass first player WHO also averages 27-30 PPG. And was a premier triple double threat on top of it. When u think about it, Bron and Big O are the only two players like that in NBA history in terms of that thought process. The difference is Big O played pretty much exclusive at the PG. While Bron played all over the place and took advantage of his epic versatility.

If another dominant scorer joins up with Bron (like a KD or AD), then I think he could fall back into a Magic type of role. Get 23/11/7 type numbers WHILE those guys lead the team in scoring. So the scoring goes down some while the assists could go up. He's at the stage of his career where he needs to pace himself IF he wants to still be considered the best in the world. Or at least a top 5 caliber player in the world.

And for those DOUBTING Bron's scoring ability LMAO!!! He never had the most complete scoring skillset. BUT dude is over 30,000 points! And averages 27 PPG for his career! He's a PHENOMENAL SCORER! He just did it from a pass first mindset. So as he ages, it makes more sense to TAP INTO his passing ability. ESPECIALLY is he wants dominant and younger players to join him!
Lebron's a very smart player. It deceives people into overrating his scoring skills. I haven't seen a lot of the Lakers this season but I did watch last night and it looked like he was being a pass first guy and a good one at that. So you can't criticize him for that. His defense sucks tho. He doesn't have the quickness to switch out on smaller guys. I dunno how much of that is age or the groin.

As for the Magic comparison. I think he's better than Magic. (Ya, ya I'm a Magic hater but Bird was better and anyone who watched them both knows it!) But Magic was a lot better at using his size advantage to score on smaller guys.