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no one has said lebron james is playing bad this season. nobody has said lebron james is on the decline.... all we're saying is he's not as explosive as he was in seasons past. lol @ pacing himself... there's a huge difference between picking your spots and not having the ability to elevate. i figured most people on ish wouldn't notice, but for the people who have watched him since coming into the league it's quite obvious...
this thread is just ridiculous. There is no decline in his athleticism, you see it less because he is involving his teammates more and controlling the ball less. If this was true, Lebron would probably be the first player to start declining at 25 without a major injury.
[QUOTE=LA_Showtime]no one has said lebron james is playing bad this season. nobody has said lebron james is on the decline.... all we're saying is he's not as explosive as he was in seasons past. lol @ pacing himself... there's a huge difference between picking your spots and not having the ability to elevate. i figured most people on ish wouldn't notice, but for the people who have watched him since coming into the league it's quite obvious...[/QUOTE]
He started in the NBA when he was 18 and has not missed any major time. He has had three full summers of additional Team USA play and his off-season workouts are becoming legendary - (nobody needs to hate on that fact...he's just a hard worker).
He has had additional season time in the playoffs.
In addition, he is 6-8 and listed at 250. He's not a Kobe, CP3, TParker body type. The fact that he flies the way he does is freakish...it will not last forever.
LBJ learns at least one major lesson per year and adds it to his knowledge: Last year's lesson was that nobody gets a prize for working your --- off in the regular season and being the best team. So...this year he is going to jump start the team every game...work on his jump shut a little more in the middle quarters...and save some for a needed 4th quarter surge. By doing that, they all hope to have some in the tank in April/May/June...because this team will need it. In addition, they need to have some 4th quarter leads in order to get some rest.
He will never not play hard, but he will not dine and dash for 48 minutes every game anymore....saving some for the playoffs.
[QUOTE=Dave3]Dude, he looks like he's barely getting off the ground compared to his former self. Before his head would be rim level on most of his dunks, right now it looks like he's barely getting up there. He's quick I guess, but doesn't get up high.[/QUOTE]
I agree, but I'm pretty sure he is saving it for the Slam Dunk Contest. :lol
[QUOTE=nbastatus]I agree, but I'm pretty sure he is saving it for the Slam Dunk Contest. :lol[/QUOTE]
I never said that's not a possibility, but I'm just asking around.
[QUOTE=Dave3]I never said that's not a possibility, but I'm just asking around.[/QUOTE]
Remember when Lebron's athleticism seemed to be worse in 2007? Was that really the case (I'm 99% sure it was, I thought the same thing myself without going on message boards), and what was the reason for it? Maybe he's experiencing the same thing again right now.
Lebron was most explosive in his second and third years. Then obviously he gained a lot of weight. I think he has been as quick as ever this season though.
[QUOTE=StroShow4][url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tv0-uvQKIw]Highlights from tonight's game[/url]
He looks pretty f@cking explosive to me. :confusedshrug:[/QUOTE]
:oldlol: at the post up at :39-:41. Looks so robotic and coarse.
I think it has to do with him bieng too passive earlier this season, and him bieng too damn heavy for a wingman. 270 pounds is too heavy for a wingman, especially for LeBron's playing style who gets banged up inside the paint and relies on his explosiveness. He should consider going back down to around 250, if he wants to play a long healthy career.
05-06 was his most explosive year, he was dunking on everyone that year. Since then I think his leaping ability hasn't been the same, though his speed and quickness has remained the same. You also have to remember he's gotten alot stronger since then. And ALOT heavier, playng around 265-275. If he would lose weight and go back to 250, then I think he would be more explosive.
Could you imagine his vertical and explosiveness if he was around 200 lbs like MJ :eek:. No way in hell MJ can retain that level of quickness and leaping ability if he put on as much weight as Lebron (relative to his height of course, so probably like 235-240). Another reason why Lebron is a better athlete imo.
[QUOTE=Fatal9]Could you imagine his vertical and explosiveness if he was around 200 lbs like MJ :eek:. No way in hell MJ can retain that level of quickness and leaping ability if he put on as much weight as Lebron (relative to his height of course, so probably like 235-240). Another reason why Lebron is a better athlete imo.[/QUOTE]
LeBron's the GOAT athlete. Duh. But athleticism only gets you so far. Look at Kobe. Physically, he's no different from Michael Finley and Ray Allen. Yet, he's been a superior player.
Yeh, long term, Lebron weighing 270 is really really bad for his knees. It doesnt matter how hard this guy works, you cant strengthen your knees and they always go out eventually. Lebron works really hard all over the court and gets up really high, coming down with 270 of eight on those knees over and over every game is not good for him if he wants to keep his explosiveness for longer.
I think even 250 is going to hurt this guy, if he went down to 240 he would still be stronger than most guys his size, have a quickness advantage over all of them, and put less stress on his knees, which means his athleticism will last longer.
[QUOTE=BallersTalk]LeBron's the GOAT athlete. Duh. But athleticism only gets you so far. Look at Kobe. Physically, he's no different from Michael Finley and Ray Allen. Yet, he's been a superior player.[/QUOTE]
thou sho wilt chamberlain fool lol
kobe's body control was superior to finley and allen... btw it's always funny when people mention kobe's athleticism and take offense when you're essentially complementing him.
[QUOTE=sixer6ad]He started in the NBA when he was 18 and has not missed any major time. He has had three full summers of additional Team USA play and his off-season workouts are becoming legendary - (nobody needs to hate on that fact...he's just a hard worker).
He has had additional season time in the playoffs.
In addition, he is 6-8 and listed at 250. He's not a Kobe, CP3, TParker body type. The fact that he flies the way he does is freakish...it will not last forever.
LBJ learns at least one major lesson per year and adds it to his knowledge: Last year's lesson was that nobody gets a prize for working your --- off in the regular season and being the best team. So...this year he is going to jump start the team every game...work on his jump shut a little more in the middle quarters...and save some for a needed 4th quarter surge. By doing that, they all hope to have some in the tank in April/May/June...because this team will need it. In addition, they need to have some 4th quarter leads in order to get some rest.
He will never not play hard, but he will not dine and dash for 48 minutes every game anymore....saving some for the playoffs.[/QUOTE]
what? he might be pacing himself, but i don't see why we would jump more slowly when driving to the hoop. :oldlol: again, he's still a freak athlete so this argument is next to pointless. people have just noticed he's not finishing as many freak layups as he was in seasons past
[QUOTE=BallersTalk]LeBron's the GOAT athlete. Duh. But athleticism only gets you so far. Look at Kobe. Physically, he's no different from Michael Finley and Ray Allen. Yet, he's been a superior player.[/QUOTE]
This is a lie. Kobe at this stage is as quick and explosive as those players were in their primes. If your talking peak Kobe, he was a level above those guys. He was only under the guys like Vince, T Mac, Wade, Bron and possibly J Rich when at his best in terms of complete athleticism.