3 Myths About LeBron James' Shooting and Scoring abilities

While discussing sports with colleagues and acquaintances, I've heard some very silly things said about LeBron James that just are not true. Mostly about his scoring and his shooting. Whether or not LeBron James is a pass first / defense first type player or not, his scoring and shooting ability is among the best if not the best in the league.



Myth 1: LeBron is not an elite scorer.

FACT: In the past decade, no other player has been as good of a scorer as LeBron James when it comes to total points. In the last 10 years, LeBron James is the only one to finish in the top FOUR in points per game every single year:

(Green-underline is LeBron, black is Kobe Bryant)

That's amazing scoring talent combine with incredible consistency.

FACT: The only player that's even close to him is Kobe Bryant, who's finished in the the top four for eight of those ten years (finished 5th three years ago and didn't play last year). So over the last decade, LeBron and Kobe have pretty much been in a scoring league all of their own.

FACT: For a "pass first player" to finish top 4 in PPG for 10 straight years, that's insane. Finishing ahead of or right behind the other best scorers in the league every year, most notably Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, Carmelo Anthony, and Kevin Durant. And he's the only one to do it every single year for the last decade. If LeBron were to take more shots, he would obviously score even more points. If LeBron were a shoot first player like those other guys, he would likely win the scoring title every single year.

FACT: LeBron's FG% is much higher than all those guys as well. That means he's finished in the top 4 in scoring every year for 10 years and he's done it by taking less shots than all those guys every year!

Career FG%
LeBron James      - .497
Kevin Durant       - .479
Carmelo Anthony - .455
Kobe Bryant        - .454
Allen Iverson        - .425

and LeBron is just getting better and better. Last year he shot .565. That was behind only 4 players that just dunk the ball all the time (DeAndre Jordan, Dwight Howard, JaVale McGee, and Serge Ibaka). Durant was 27th overall at Carmelo was 71 overall.



Myth 2: LeBron is not a SHOOTER like Kobe is or those other guys are. When it comes to Jump Shots, LeBron is not good.

FACT: LeBron is a great jump shooter. Here is a website where you can measure a players FG% counting ONLY jump shots: (here)

As always, let me do the grunt work for you so you don't have to:

(That's hard to see but you can use that link and look it up yourselves if you can't see it and don't believe me.)

Interpretation:  I took the "jump shot % only" stat from 2012-2013 season for the following players:

LeBron James - 39.8%
Ray Allen - 39.7%
Kevin Durant - 37.8%
Carmelo A. - 37.3%
Stephen Curry - 33.5%
Kobe Bryant - 31.4%

That's LeBron James leading all those guys in JUMP SHOTS. Does he lead all of them in jump shots every year? Probably not. But he's always right up there with the best of the best. LeBron James is one of the best jump shooters in the game.

Just for fun, here is Derrick Rose in his MVP season jump shots:

31.9% ....that's right around Kobe range but not quite up to LeBron / Melo / Durant level.




Myth 3: LeBron can't shoot 3 pointers like MJ, Kobe, and the rest of them. He is a bad three-point shooter.

FACT: Here is a list of the top 20 all time scorers (who shot a lot of threes) and their 3P% (with LeBron added to prove a point).

Reggie Miller             -   39.47 %

Dirk Nowitzki            -  38.18 %

LeBron James           -   34.10 %

Kobe Bryant             -   33.50 %

Michael Jordan          -   32.68 %

Dominique Wilkins     -  31.87 %

Allen Iverson             -   31.30 %

LeBron is surely no Reggie Miller or Steph Curry when it comes to three point shooters, but to say he's a bad three point shooter is like saying MJ or Kobe are bad three point shooters. His percentages are better than Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins and Allen Iverson at 3 pointers. Say what you will about LeBron's three point shooting abilities, but whatever you say the same goes for Kobe's and MJ's three pointers. Like I said, he's not going to lead the league in threes. 34% isn't "great." However, it does put him right up there with (in fact just ahead of) great shooters like Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan.

(PS. He has improved at his 3 pointers. His last 3 seasons he averaged .362 .406 .379 respectively)


Bottom Line: 

scoring: LeBron James has finished in the top 4 in points per game for 10 years straight (for some perspective - Carmelo Anthony, who some believe to be the best scorer in the NBA, has only SIX finishes in the top FIVE in those last ten years). LeBron has also won a scoring title and has been shooting 56.6% for the last 2 years. LeBron James IS a top scorer and arguably the best scorer in the NBA.

jump shots: LeBron is a great jump shooter.

three pointers: LeBron's 3 point shooting is on par with, in fact just ahead of, Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.



Update: 12/9/2014 - Can't believe I didn't share this stat when I first wrote this post. LeBron James is 3rd all time in career PPG right behind the two best scorers of all time: Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain. LeBron is one of the best scorer's this league has ever seen. To think otherwise is just ignorance.

Update:  12/17/2016 - LeBron's is on a monster streak of scoring at least 10 points in a game. Right now he's at 739 straight games. That's 3rd best streak behind only Kareem and MJ. Well ahead of everyone else.

The new Brady vs Manning debate

The classic Tom Brady vs Peyton Manning. Two legends nearing the end of their careers. But two players have been set up to take their place. These two players are so similar to the two legends they are taking over for.

Wilson vs Luck.
Brady vs Peyton.

Here's how the debate goes:

Player A - Peyton Manning = Andrew Luck
Player B - Tom Brady = Russell Wilson

Player A was the 1st overall draft pick. Player A had been hyped up since high school as the next big deal. Player A was picked to be the future of the franchise. Player A has great offensive weapons. Player A puts up stats like crazy and always makes the playoffs every year. Player A totals up yards and passing TD's like it's nobody's business.

Players B was drafted late in the draft, well after the first round, in the same draft as Player A. Player B was drafted to be a back-up QB. Player B also has great numbers, but Player A's overall yards and TD's overshadow Player B's overall stats. Player B also makes the playoffs every year. However, Player B always has more playoff success. He has been to and won more superbowls than Player A.

Player A has overall better stats, but can be negated by having had better offensive weapons than Player B. Also, perhaps playing in a Indianapolis dome with perfect controlled weather conditions has helped when throwing the ball vs Player B other playing consistently in cold, snow, rain, and/or just play out bad outdoor weather in (Boston/Seattle).

Player B has more superbowl rings and a much better playoff record (Player A actually has a losing record in the playoffs), but Player B has also had a much better defense. ("Defense wins championships.")

Player A has throw for much more yards. Player B has thrown much less interceptions.

Player A has had good coaches, but Player B always had an all-time great coach in (Belichick/Carroll).

So who's better? They guy who played with the better offense, worse defense, played in perfect dome weather, and accumulating much more overall stats? Or the guy with a better defense, worse offensive weapons, much less total stats but amazing ratios and great stats none-the-less, and much more playoff success?

What do you think?

update 1/18/2015 - With Russell Wilson and Tom Brady both getting to the superbowl, and with Luck and Manning both with another early exit, my doppelganger theory is growing stronger. Here are the 3-year side-by-side stats (in picture form) -

The Perfect NBA Mount Rushmore

Many a people have thrown out names for an NBA Mount Rushmore. But there is a perfect 4 people that, if there really was a Mount Rushmore for the NBA, would have to on there. They are: Bill Russell (Washington), Wilt Chamberlain (Jefferson), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Lincoln), and Michael Jordan (Roosevelt).

Russell and Wilt were the pioneers of the NBA. The first greats. They still hold records today.

Bill Russell won like nobody else will be able to win again. 13 season, 12 finals, 11 rings. The finals MVP is named after this man. He is the first person that has to be an NBA Mount Rushmore

Wilt Chamberlain scored like nobody else will be able to score again and. The 100 point games. More 60+ point games than everyone else combine that's ever played in the NBA. Bill and Wilt, like George Washington and Jefferson, have to be on an NBA mount Rushmore.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar holds two records that force me to put him on. He is the all time leader in points scored and the all time leader in MVPs. He's 3rd all time in rebounds and in blocks. He has 6 rings. He was so good for so long. You can't have a Mount Rushmore without the leading scorer / leading mvp's.

And in a Mount Rushmore, how can you leave out Jordan?

I've thought about all of this a lot and discussed it with a lot of different people. This is the perfect NBA Mount Rushmore and you cannot make a better one than this.

Stats:

Bill Russell: 11 championships (12 final appearances in 13 seasons), 5 MVPs, Finals MVP named after him, 2nd all time rebounding...

Wilt Chamberlain:100 point game, more 60+ points games than everyone else combine, 4 MVP's, 1st all time rebounding...

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: Most MVPs all time (6), 6 rings, Most points all time, 3rd most blocks all time, 3 most rebounds all time...

Michael Jordan: Most famous and most advertised player of all time. Face of the NBA (and everything else). 6 finals MVPs, 5 season MVPs. Probably more recognized American sports player in the world.

PS - Two people that were right there but not. 1) Oscar Robertson. He was Jordan before Jordan was Jordan. He was a big, fast, strong guard. He averaged 30+ points AND a triple double for several seasons. No one else has ever averaged a triple double. Oscar is one of the best players of all time. 2) Magic Johnson. Also one of the best players of all time, plus one of the most recognizable. Magic really changed the NBA for the better. Many say he and Larry Bird "saved" the NBA. Had I have a 5th or 6th spot, Magic and/or Oscar would be up there.

There are 7 contenders for NBA's greatest player of all time. Then there's everyone else.

In the history of the NBA, we have seen some great basketball and some great basketball players. When talking greatest of all time, there are so many factors that to into that. How good was their competition at the time? How many points did they score? What were some of their best games? Were they good under pressure? Were they well rounded? Did they play defence and offence? What's their averages look like? What's their career totals? Did they dominate games? Could they take over games? What if this? What if that?

After much research and much debating, I've found there to be what I call the "Tier 1" of basketball players. This is made up of 7 players who can be argued as the greatest player of all time. They are:

TIER 1:  (MVPs)

Bill Russell (5)

Oscar Robertson (1)

Wilt Chamberlain (4)

 Kareem Abdul-Jabbarr (6)

Ervin "Magic" Johnson (3)

Michael Jordan (5)

LeBron James (4)

These are players who dominated the game. (I personally like to leave LeBron out of the conversation because he's not done yet.) These are players that have stats that will blow your mind. These are players that have 4 MVPs or more (besides Oscar Robertson smushed in between Wilt and Bill). These are players with multiple championships. These are players that are well rounded. These players play good defence and offense. These players make their teammates better (except maybe Wilt...). These players can pass, rebound, shoot well, steal, block... they do it all. They all have great leadership and are all winners. I've heard great arguments for each of those players as the greatest of all time. If you want to argue one of seven, that is respectable and you might be right.

After tier 1, we have:

TIER 2:  (MVPs)

Bob Pettit (2)

Elgin Baylor (0)

Moses Malone (1)

Jerry West (0)

Julius Erving (1)

Larry Bird (3)

Isiah Thomas (0)

Charles Barkley (1)

Patrick Ewing (0)

Hakeem "the dream" Olajuwon (1)

John Stockton (0)

Scottie Pippin (0)

Shaquille O'neal (1)

Allen Iverson (1)

Kobe Bryant (1)

Tim Duncan (2)

(etc.)........

These guys are great players. However, they simply didn't dominate as did the tier 1 players.

Some of these guys are specialists who dominate some things (Iverson at scoring, Stockton at passing/stealing...). These guys have around 1 MVP. Some of these guys were victims of circumstance (Stockton played against Jordan, Iverson had bad teams, Pippin was always number 2...) Others were benefited by circumstance (Kobe drafted by the Lakers, played with Shaq and for Phil Jackson) (Hakeem won his only 2 championships the 2 years Jordan didn't play). Some of these guys lacked leadership or had problems with attitude. Some of these guys hid weaknesses by playing their role perfectly. Some of them never won a single ring or MVP.

Do you think Magic Johnson or LeBron James would have complained about having Shaq as a teammate and forced him out as Kobe did? No. Instead, they would have lead that team to win 8 championships with Shaq and Phil Jackson.

People who argue tier 2 players as "greatest of all time" are usually baseless and without facts. They maybe top 10 all time, or perhaps make your team of top 13, but you cannot convince me that any one of these players is the G.O.A.T. All the facts, the stats, the eye test, and everything else point to one of the seven players in tier one being the best of all time.

For more stats on the tier 1 guys and on a few tier 2 guys, check out my top 10 I did a while ago: http://keelesports.blogspot.com/2014/03/top-10-nba-players-all-time-keeping-in.html

4 Reasons the Cavs Should Not trade for Kevin Love

The Cavs are very desperate to get Kevin Love right now. They are willing to trade their top pick this year Andrew Wiggins plus other assets. They are also willing to take on bad contracts like JJ Barea and Kevin Martin. Here are 4 reasons why they shouldn't do it:

1. LeBron didn't make any demands when he came to Cleveland. He said he wanted to help the young talent get better, and he wanted to help the city of Cleveland. He said he wanted Cleveland to become a place where young stars want to come and play. Cleveland can still contend without trading for Love. By keeping Wiggins, this makes them contenders now and contenders in the future. If they trade Wiggins, they will be better now, but much worse in the future. LeBron said wants to help Cleveland be better for the long term. Keeping Wiggins will help you stay contenders for a long, long time.

2. They have a lot of cap space right now. Adding Kevin Love and resigning him would take most of their cap space. Then they'd be stuck with the team they have right now and wont have the cap space next year.


3. It'd be better to wait for next year to pull the trigger. Again, LeBron came to Cleveland with zero demands. He said himself he doesn't expect to win a championship right away. Next year there will be a lot of great free agents (starting with Kevin Love and LaMarcus Aldridge). If you wait one year, you can keep Wiggins and still get a Love or an Aldridge next year with all your money you still have from not trading Wiggins.

4. There's a great fit out there they could sign right now and still keep Wiggins: Greg Monroe. If they Cavs have to make a move now, they should go with Monroe, not Love. They could sign Greg Monroe with all that cap space AND keep Wiggins. Monroe is a great rebounder, he's a good defender, and he's 6'11" with a good wing span. Monroe is a perfect fit when it comes playing with LeBron James. I love Anderson Varejao, but Monroe plays bigger and stronger. With Monroe and Varejao playing big, LeBron and Wiggins on the wings and Kyrie at 1, there's a real good looking starting lineup! (Or go small with James at the 4 and stick Waiters and Wiggins on the wings.) Monroe would also (probably) be cheaper than Love. I think I'd rather have Monroe+Wiggins (and whoever else you keep) than just Love+two bad contracts.

Conclusion. The Cavs have some great options right now and most of them include keeping Wiggins. Wiggins is the number one pick in what's being called "the best draft since LeBron's 2003 draft." He is super athletic and has such high potential. There's no reason to trade him and take on bad contracts to get Kevin Love right now. The Cavs could go get Greg Monroe right now and keep Wiggins. Or wait till next year when there's a plethora of unrestricted big men (Love, Aldridge, Tyson Chandler, Roy Hibbert, DeAndre Jordan, Marc Gasol, Omer Asik........) and sign one of them, and still keep Wiggins!

My sports friend Mo said it well: "LeBron went to Cleveland supposedly to rebuild a franchise. Kevin Love makes them mortgage their future for now."

What do you think?

LeBron's two best (and worst) options

As a LeBron fan, I am glad he opted out of his contract. Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade make way too much money than they're worth, and therefore Miami can't afford any more help. So where should LeBron go?

LeBron has two amazing options, but would have to work a little 'forcing of hand' to make one of them happen.

1. Take Blake Griffin's spot in Los Angeles

Make a sign and trade deal for Blake Griffin. One thing LeBron James has never had to is really good, experienced coach. LeBron, unlike many other super stars, wants to listen to his coach and play team basketball. LeBron would do very well playing for a great coach like Doc Rivers.

LeBron already has a great friendship with Chris Paul. And having a good defensive center in DeAndre Jordan is something the Heat never had and desperately needed in the finals this year.

2. Join Carmelo Anthony in Houston

I've been saying this for a long time and I'll say it again. Carmelo Anthony is a thousand-times a better player when he plays with LeBron. When Carmelo plays with the King, he lets LeBron handle the ball and drive to the hoop. When they play together, Melo becomes an off-the-ball jump shooter. When this happens, Melo breaks Olympic records, all star records, and other records for 3 pointers made. If LeBron and Melo could team up, Carmelo would win the scoring title for sure and LeBron would probably average 10 assists a game.

For this to work, the Rockets have to get rid of James Harden. He's a ball hog. He's not as good a driver as LeBron and he's not as good a shooter as Melo. The only all star in the NBA that plays worse defense than Melo is Harden. Harden+Melo+LeBron would be horrible. Howard+Melo+LeBron would be magic.


          Really though, wherever LeBron ends up, I will be rooting for him. I love LeBron's approach basketball on and off the court. There are, however, two spots where I really hope he DOESN'T end up.

1. Los Angeles Lakers

Going to the Lakers would be horrible for LeBron. The fans that hate him the most are the Laker and Kobe fans. They are also the fans that are hardest to win over. If LeBron goes the LA and doesn't win 2 championships right away, he'll get booed out of the building. Also, LeBron would lose a lot of fans like me that love him and hate the Lakers. I will still hope he does well statistically, but I cannot cheer the Buss family, Kobe Bryant, or that franchise to win any more championships. I just can't. Bottom line, LeBron would lose a lot of fans, respect, and won't get that back from the Laker fans.

2. "Home Sweet Home" Cleveland Cavaliers

Lastly, I would advise LeBron not to go back to Cleveland. The Owner was so bitter when LeBron left that he wrote that awful letter to him. The front office sucks. The team sucks. Going back to Cleveland could be the biggest mistake of his career.



Be smart LeBron!

Johnny Football and Tebow Mania

I've been saying this for many months now, but this morning I heard Colin Cowherd say it, so I'm bring it back and saying it again... Whoever drafts Johnny "Football" Manziel should get Tim Tebow as their back-up QB.

Reason 1 - If you draft Manziel, you get a guy who is real good at running the ball. You will make a playbook designed to his strengths. If he gets hurt, you will want a QB to step in that can play the same style of football. This way, the offense doesn't have to learn a completely new playbook while Manziel is out.

Although Tim Tebow isn't the exact same QB as Manziel, he is surely as close to Manziel that you can find as a back-up. You can use the same playbook with Tebow as with Manziel. Just use a few more running plays and a few less passing plays.

Reason 2 - Manziel is a QB that can extend plays and pick up long runs. He's going to get hit a lot and he's going to get hit hard. Add to that he is a smaller guy (compared to other NFL players), Manziel could get hurt easily. You're going to want a QB that can keep you in the playoff picture (if that's where you are) and that you won't have to change your entire offensive scheme.

Reason 3 - How about actually playing Tebow for a fourth of the game or a third of the game. This way, not only is Tim Tebow your "fire insurance" if Maziel misses any time, but he can also be a  "fire prevention." You can keep Maziel's snap count down. Keep his hits down. This will keep Manziel from being hurt in the first place.

If you drafted Maziel, you probably will want him to be your franchise QB. That means he needs to play more than a few years. Keeping a small, running quarterback healthy for a long time is near impossible (ask RGII or Vick). Inserting Tebow for a chunk of minutes each game could help keep Manziel not only stay healthy, but fresher too. Many NFL players, especially rookies, tend to run out of gas in the end of the year.

Whether you think Tebow is a "good quarterback" or not, we do know that he went 9-3 with the Broncos starter including a playoff win in a system set up for him. Tebow, at the least, can be a productive back-up QB in a system that is conducive to his style of play.

NBA Playoff Kryptonite

With the playoffs almost here, there are some top teams that don't match up well with some lower seeds. Here are the match-ups that those top teams don't want to see. (But we want to see them, because we love the upsets!)

San Antonio Spurs - The team the Spurs don't want to see first round is the Golden State Warriors. The Spurs had their hands full last year in the playoffs with the Warriors. The first game was a 129-127 thriller that the Spurs barely won. The Warriors still pushed them to game 6. The Warriors are better this year than last. Iguodala is playing very well in his new role, Klay Thompson is shooting really well, and Curry is not only shooting lights out but is also passing better than ever. The Spurs do not want to draw the Warriors in the first round. The chances are slimming down that this could happen, but the Warriors still could slid down from 6th to 7th or 8th, and perhaps the Thunder catch up to the Spurs and take 1st place.




Los Angeles Clippers - The Clippers are just 2 games behind the Thunder for second place, with a game against them coming up. They could catch the Thunder pretty easily. However, if they do, their worst case scenario could line up in the first round. The team the Clippers want to avoid is the Memphis Grizzlies.

Last year, the Grizzlies beat them in the first round (lost the first two game then won four straight). The Clippers can run with anybody and love to play fast place, high-flying basketball. However, The Grizzlies play physical and hard really get in the Chippers players heads. They play slow and dirty. They have two big, strong, mean bigs in Gasol and Randolph. They are a bad matchup for the Clippers. This year, they've played 3 times, and the Grizzlies have won two of the three.

Miami Heat - I'm going to go two rounds deep with the Heat.

1st round - Of any team that could mathematically end up in the 7th or 8th spot, the New York Knicks are the team the Heat would rather avoid. I think the Heat could handle the Knicks fairly easily, but the Knicks have the best chance to beat them over any other team in that position (Bobcats, Wizards, Hawks, or Knicks). The Knicks live by the jump shot. With Carmelo and JR shooting 3's, and Tyson Chandler and Stoudemire down low, the Knicks can really spread out the Heat and get the shots they want. When their shots fall, they're a very difficult matchup for the Heat. Last year, the Knicks beat the Heat 3 of the 4 times they played. This year, they only got them once, but they've been playing by far their best basketball these last two months.

2nd round - Worst case scenario - The Bulls and Nets play each other in the first round and the Heat have to play the winner of them.

• Chicago Bulls - LeBron shuts down Derrick Rose. But when Rose doesn't play, the Bulls do better against the Heat. A few years ago, Derrick Rose was playing in a game against the Heat, and the Heat were winning the whole game. Derrick Rose left (fouled out?) in the 4th quarter, and the Bulls caught up, forced overtime, and won. The past two years in the regular season, the heat are 1-0 against the bulls with Rose, and 3-4 against them without. Remember last year they Bulls broke their 27 game winning streak? The Bulls play really, really physical and mean when they play the Heat. The Heat would rather play anyone else in the 2nd round. Except for maybe the Brooklyn Nets.
• Brooklyn Nets - The Heat have lost all 3 meetings this year against the Nets. This team has been really good in the second half of the season. The Heat's only answer to guarding Kevin Garnett is LeBron James, and that is physically exhausting task since LBJ is so much smaller than him and KG plays so hard in the post. Pierce and KG really put in an extra something when they play the Heat. And with Joe Johnson and Deron Williams, this is a very talented team that's getting it together at the right time. They're a scary team and a bad matchup for the Heat.

Top 12 NBA players all time - Keeping in mind DOMINANCE

When looking at the all time great players of all time, one important thing I look for is dominance. Someone who can take over a game. Someone who dominates all season. Someone who dominates post-seasons. Someone who dominates their entire generation.

The 5 are NOT IN ORDER. One simple cannot be above the other in the top 5. They all should be number one. You can't hardly compare them. Some of them played in different time periods. All 5 were so dominate but in such different ways.

1) Bill Russell. Russell played 13 season and had 12 championship appearances and 11 championships. He was so well rounded. He could score if he needed to, but focused on everything else. Over his career, he averaged almost 5 assists a game and 22.5 rebounds. He is as one of the greatest defenders of all time. Blocks and steals were not recorded back then, but stories say that he was an incredible blocker. He was very athletic. Russell was the ultimate team player. He made everyone else around him better. He didn't care about records; he cared about winning. And he dominated winning.

1) Wilt Chamberlain. He was so athletic. He would run up and down the court unlike anyone else in that time period. 32 times he had 60+ point games, which is more than everyone else ever combine. His 100 point game. He lead the league in assist one year to prove that he could. Great shot blocker. He had good jump shots. He's the only player to have season average 50+ points. No one else has ever averaged 40+ points. He was just as good a rebounder as scorer. 22.9 rebounds a game in he career (1st all-time. Russell is 2nd). To give some perspective, he had one season where he scored 50 points in a game 45 times. Michael Jordan had 39 games where he scored 50 or more in his career (including playoffs). Also, he did things like this:

• On February 2, 1968 - 22 points, 25 rebounds and 21 assists (Only double-triple-double ever).
• March 18, 1968 - 53 points, 32 rebounds, 14 assists (Most points scored in a triple-double game).

1) Michael Jordan. Dominated his era. I feel like I don't need to say much here. Most people already accept Jordan as best ever or at least one of the best ever. 6 championships. 6 Bill Russell MVP Championship awards. No one in that era could stop him. They could "only hope to contain him." Averaged a record 30.12 points a season. He also lead the league in steals three times.

1) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. All time leader in points. He was unguardable. He was also well rounded. 3rd all time in rebounds and 3rd all time in blocks. He has 6 rings (same as Jordan). 6 regular season MVPs (more than anyone else). Dominate. Lead the league in blocked shots 4 different seasons.

1) Oscar Robertson. Averaged a triple double in his second year in the league. He was the Magic or LeBron of his time. He was a big guard. As Jordan is to LeBron, Oscar was to Jordan. People who grew up watching Jordan say MJ is better than LeBron, and people who grew up watching Oscar say he was better than Jordan. Here's some quotes:

• Former Cavaliers general manager Wayne Embry (who is one year older than Robertson) said "Pound for pound, inch for inch, I think Oscar was the greatest player of all time."
• Kareem Abdul Jabbar - "LeBron is awesome, MJ was awesome, but I think Oscar Robertson would have kicked them both in the behind.''

Oscar Robertson averaged 30.5 points per game his rookie year, and 30.3 points per game in his first 8 seasons (all while average nearly a triple double all 8 years). He was a great defender. He was really big and was really fast and really strong. It's hard to compare him with Jordan or LeBron because it was such a different Era, but Oscar was really, really good and dominated his era.

Bottom 5 - I'll try to keeps these a bit shorter.

6) Magic Johnson. So dominate. He played center once when Kareem couldn't make it to a playoff game and still won the game. 2nd most triple doubles behind Oscar Robertson. 2 most 20+ assists games behind John Stockton. He has the season record of 13.1 assists a game, and the record career of 11.2. Had his career not been cut short, I have no doubt he would be in the greatest of all time conversation.

7) LeBron James. Out of respect that he is not yet retired, I put him down here at #7. (I'm not the only one. Bill Simmons recently said LeBron James is one of the best eight players of all time.) 4 MVP's already and 2 MVP championships. Dominate. So many dimensions to his game: 

• Passing: He makes passes I've only seen Magic make. Bob Ryan recently said that LeBron is "the best passer in the NBA... PERIOD! Better than guards.... PERIOD!"
• Defense: He is a great one-on-one defender and he can guard anyone. I saw him shut down reigning MVP Derrick Rose on multiple isolation plays in the 2011 conference championship. In the 2012 conference championship, he was the only player on his team that could contain Kevin Garnett. His help defence is also second to none. 
• Scoring: 3rd ALLTIME in PPG behind only Wilt and Michael Jordan. He's got a great post game, mid range game, and a very respectable 3 point game. All around a super dominate player. Has never finished less than top 4 in PPG every season for the last 10 years.
• FG% - This year he is shooting 58.2% (4th place), behind only DeAndre Jordan, Andre Drummond, and Dwight Howard. Last year he finished shooting 56.5 % (5th place) behind DeAndre Jordan, Dwight Howard, Javale McGee, and Serge Ibaka.
• Side-Note: Some "LeBron-haters" say if he shot more jump shots like Carmelo, Kobe, Curry, Durant, or Ray Allen, he'd have a bad FG%. But that's not true. Here is a websight were you can track jump shot only percentage, and James' % on only jumpshots in 2012-13 season was higher than all 5 of the previously mentioned players!
• http://vorped.com/bball/index.php/player/shotchart/837-LeBron-James/season/2012-2013-REG
• Career average so far: 27.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, 6.9 assists.

And he's not done.

(big drop off here - the top 7 are in contention for greatest player of all time and nobody else really is.)

8) Larry Bird. Clutch. Confident. Very skilled. Complete player. He got lots of Triple Double. Not quite as dominant as the other 7 in front of him, but definitely top 10.

9) Shaquille O'Neal. Dominate. 4 rings, 3 MVP championship awards. He imposed his will on everyone else. Interesting note: Only got dunked one once in his career (by Derrick Coleman).

10) Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon. (Edit 7/28/2014) - Let's hear what Jordan, who played against Hakeem, had to say about The Dream - "If I had to pick a center... I would take Olajuwon. That leaves our Shaq, Patrick Ewing. It leaves out Wilt Chamberlain. It leaves out a lot of people. And the reason I would take Olajuwon is very simple: he is so versatile because of what he can give you from that position. It's not just his scoring, not just his rebounding or not just his blocked shots. People don't realize he was in the top seven in steals. He always made great decisions on the court. For all the facets of the game, I have it give it to him."


Take that with a grain of salt as MJ has proven to be a not-so-good judge of talent with his horrible decisions as an owner, but I have Olajuwon rounding out my top 10. Olajuwon got kind of lucky and won his two rings when Jordan was experimenting with baseball. Only won one MVP award, but is a top 10 leader in points, blocks, and steals and top 20 in rebounds. Well rounded big man.




11) Tim Duncan. With Duncan winning his 5th rings, and with how dominate the Spurs have been since they drafted Duncan in 1997, I am putting him just above Kobe for number 11. He now has the most double-doubles in playoff history. He also has the most minutes in playoff history, because he always gets to the playoffs and goes far. Like LeBron James, I believe Duncan is even better that the stats show. His leadership, experience, personality and determination make him and his team that much better.

12) Kobe Bryant is a poor man's version of Michael Jordan. Laker fans will put him higher than 12th and people who don't have a horse in the race put him lower. I grew up watching Kobe be a top NBA player so I have him a bit in between the bias and the unbias. (Sports analyst Bill Simmons had him at 15th in 2010 now probably has him 16th seeing as he already had LeBron at 20 and considering all LeBron has done since 2010 http://www.nbadraft.net/node/16527.)

Just Missed: Jerry West and Moses Malone are just outside of my top 12.

To back myself up a little bit, I think this stat speaks of itself:

The list of players who have won at least four MVP trophies:

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (6)

Michael Jordan (5)

Bill Russell (5)

Wilt Chamberlain (4)

LeBron James (4)

Links:
-Why KOBE is OVERRATED http://keelesports.blogspot.com/2013/11/why-kobe-bryant-is-overrated.html

-Fun video of highlights of Bill Russell and Wilt - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7O63ohddcYM

-Where I got the two quotes about Oscar Robertson being better than Jordan or LeBron http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2013/11/any_greatest_of_all_time_discu.html

-Where is where I found out LeBron is 3rd in FG % this year and 4th last year (and 3rd in points per game this year and 4th last year) http://espn.go.com/nba/statistics/player/_/stat/field-goals
-Quotes about Bill Russell:
        -"Russell single-handedly revolutionize this game simply because he made defense so important." -Red Auerbach
        -"If we played Boston four on four, without Russell, we probably would have won every series. The guy killed us. He's the one who prevented us from achieving true greatness." -LA Lakers forward "Hot Rod" Hundley

Jimmer Fredette: The Answer

The Utah Jazz are on track to finish in the worst possible position we imagined this year. Right now, they are bad enough to be no where near playoff contention, but also have no shot at getting a top 3 draft pick. Right now, the Jazz
have the 8th worst record in the NBA, and are only a few games behind the Cavs, Pistons, and Hornets.

The Kings just bought out Jimmer Fredette. He'll be a free agent in a few days. Jimmer signing a year contract with Jazz would be a Win-Win-Win situation for everyone involved.

WIN 1 - Many people in Utah (including myself and my friends) would immediately go buy the new Jimmer Jersey. We would make sure to go to a lot more games this year to see and support Fredette.  We love The Jimmer. We want to watch him shoot a couple 3 pointers and drive to the hoop once or twice a night. Is that too much to ask?

WIN 2 - Jimmer. He would be back in Utah where he is worshipped. He should get plenty of playing time and therefore a real chance to make a name for himself in the NBA. All while being cheered for like a superstar.

WIN 3 - The Jazz organization. And here is the Win-Win situation inside of the Win-Win-Win. First of all, they will make more money because of fans purchasing Fredette items and also from selling more tickets to the games. Second, If they sign Jimmer and give him plenty of playing time, one of two things will happen:

• WIN 3.1 - Either, Jimmer will be good and become a useful asset. If this happens, the Jazz look like geniuses. They gave Jimmer the chance he needed and he proved them right. The Jazz now have a bench player that contributes, gives them valuable minutes, and is an instant fan favorite. Everybody is happy. Everybody wins.

• WIN 3.2 - Or, Jimmer will be bad and we will lose more games. If this happens, the Jazz are just as good if not even better off. If Jimmer is bad, he causes Utah to lose more games. Therefore, he single-handedly becomes the solution to our problem of our limbo state. A bad Jimmer given playing time would get us right back in the race for Wiggins or Parker. The Jazz could then say to the fans "We gave Jimmer a chance, and it didn't work." Jazz get a top 5 round pick and cut Jimmer Fredette. Everybody is happy. Everybody wins.

Either way, Everybody wins.

He who remembers the past knows that LeBron James will win MVP 2014

The MVP race is the same every year. The person who wins the MVP was the MVP all year, and then there are a bunch of random contenders that change throughout the year to make you believe there's actually a "race."

For example. Here in Utah, we remember when Jimmer Fredette won player of the year. He was the only person in the MVP discussion for the whole season. However, because the media made up contenders, we weren't sure if he would win in until he actually won it. The media had us holding our breath as they talked up "the race." At the beginning of the year, it was a race between Sullinger and Fredette for POY. About mid season, Duke is playing well and Nolan is having a since streak. We forget about Sullinger and the media convinces us Nolan vs Jimmer is the real MVP race. Then Kemba Walker starts playing well in the last few weeks of the season and into the tournament. Now it Kemba vs Jimmer for POY, and the press again convinces us the Kemba actually has a 50% chance of winning it over the guy who's been the MVP all season. Who won it? Jimmer of course. They guy who's actually been in the race all year.

Remember last year in the NBA? At the beginning of the year, everyone was saying "It's LeBron vs Durant. One of those two will win the MVP." Then about 3 months into the season it was "CP3 or LeBron. One of those two." Then a few months later it was "Melo vs LeBron. One of those two." LeBron was always going to win it. The media just wanted some drama and we are always ready to eat it up.

Remember this year? "It's Paul George or LeBron. One of those two will win MVP." As if George had a 50% chance of winning MVP. And this went on for about 3 months. Durant wasn't even the picture. Then Durant plays 3 weeks of great basketball. Now all of  a sudden it's Durant that has 50% chance of winning the MVP. It's "LeBron vs Durant. One of those two for sure." I suspect in a month someone else will rise up, have a hot streak, and we'll forget about Durant (like we did George), and the articles will about "LeBron vs _______ for MVP." (see below for the articles about George vs LeBron for MVP).


If I had to guess on who will be "contender" for MVP at the end of the year, I'd say it will probably be Curry or Griffin. Everyone loves Curry and and we're so ready to crown him MVP. If Curry can start having some 30 point games and maybe one triple double, Durant joins George as a distant memory for MVP and it become LeBron vs Curry for MVP.

Then it will be time to chose an MVP. There will be all these sports articles, radio segments, and ESPN shows about why Curry should win the MVP over LeBron. Just like they're doing now with KD now. Just like they did with George two months ago (see links below). And Just like they did with Kemba Walker in 2011. Everyone will be biting they fingernails waiting to see the results and........

LeBron wins MVP again.

Obviously. It was always going to be him. He is by far the most valuable player.

The reason we make up all this "contention" for MVP is most likely because people love drama and because people love the underdogs. We were so quick to forget George and put Durant in his place (because neither are legit contenders for MVP over LeBron) and we will be just as quick to ditch KD for Curry if Curry can have 2 or 3 weeks of brilliants (we love drama and underdogs).




As promised, Here are some links for "Paul George for MVP over LeBron" written just two months ago.









December 17th - "Will one of these ballers be crowned MVP at the end of the year? Bank on it." 

( The name of this is "2014 NBA MVP LeBron James vs Paul George" with this picture attached ->)
http://streetball.com/photo/2014-nba-mvp-lebron-james-vs-paul-george

December 14th - "We now know PAUL GEORGE IS A SUPERSTAR AND THE LEAGUE MVP RIGHT NOW... What’s sad is LeBron James will probably win again" (I didn't add the caps. They were like that)...
http://blogs.1070thefan.com/2013/12/14/at-nba-quarter-pole-george-top-mvp-candidate/




December 11th - (ESPN) "After the Pacers' victory over the Heat on Tuesday... it seems appropriate now to make the argument for George over LeBron James and other top candidates. "

http://espn.go.com/blog/statsinfo/post/_/id/80317/paul-george-for-mvp-the-numbers-say-yes






December 10th - (ESPN) Skip Bayless tweets that Paul George in the "MVP front runner."https://twitter.com/RealSkipBayless/status/410580010324348928







December 4th - The name of this article is "MVP Rankings: Paul George back at No. 1"

http://www.sheridanhoops.com/2013/12/04/sheridans-mvp-rankings-dec-4-edition-paul-george-back-at-no-1/







December 5th - (NBA.SI.COM ) A "buy or sell Paul George is the biggest threat to LeBron Jam'es MVP reign" between two "experts." One guy says yes and the other guy says no because "the biggest threat to LeBron James is a complacent LeBron James or an injured LeBron James."

http://nba.si.com/2013/12/05/blazers-paul-george-spurs-wizards-timberwolves-buy-sell/







December 1st - "And as of right now, the campaign is strong: PAUL GEORGE FOR MVP."http://isportsweb.com/2013/12/01/indiana-pacers-paul-george-mvp/

A Dark Horse Team for The King

After writing my article on the best teams for LeBron James (read it HERE), I began to chat with a good friend of mine. Scott has convinced me of a dark horse team for LeBron James that would make a lot of sence.

The Sacramento Kings.

Now I have to admit, when Scott first suggested the Kings as a possible destination for LeBron, I thought "no way." First of all, Scott is the biggest Kings fan I know. My first thought was that he is just being a homer fan hoping LeBron would go there. Jokingly, I suggested the Jazz would be a great fit as well.

I told him: The Kings are last place in the West. The Kings are so messed up they almost lost their franchise last year to Seattle. Plus they play in the west. Why would The King even consider leaving the 'Easy' East to join a messed up Kings team that's the worst team in the 'Wild' West?

Well, let me give you 3 good reasons why (all quotes come from my buddy Scott).

1. New front office. In recent past, this team has been really messed up. However, the ownership was to blame. Now they have new owner and are headed in the right direction. "The Kings Ownership group is really leading into a great future with the new arena and expanding to a global market... The Kings were a mess because of their owners who were incompetent, going broke and trying to get one last cash flush. They tried everything from Vegas to Virginia to get money for the Kings, and eventually settled for Seattle who tried to make a backdoor deal. That didn't go through and right now the NBA has proven how deeply committed it is to SAC. [The NBA] has found a great ownership group with a vision for the future and has a couple of bright young minds in Mike Malone (coach) and Pete D'Alessandro (GM) trying to right the ship." I think this is a great foundation. A good front office is very important (this is a huge reason why LeBron left Cleveland in the first place).

2. DeMarcus Cousins. Cousins might be the perfect compliment to LeBron. Cousins can't carry a team, but he can be an amazing #2. Right now, LeBron is carrying the burden of having to guard everyone. For example, every time they played the Celtics in the playoffs, LeBron had to guard Kevin Garnett. He was the only one that could contain KG. LeBron had to fight the Big Ticket all night because nobody else could. Stuff like that is taxing on LeBron, it gets him in foul trouble (LeBron fouled out in a playoff game the Celtics won in overtime) and defending players like KG takes him away from the parameter and help defense where the King really shines. LeBron also has to fight hard for every rebound because no one else on his team can get them. DMC would help immensely on defense and he is a rebounding machine. LeBron would be able to stay fresher for the offensive side of the ball, and also be able to do more help defense where he is so good. "The Kings roster really just needs a #1 option... and some depth and experience. Those things could all be added with the man who could be the King of the Kings." Scott also tells me DMC plays well against the great bigs like Hibbert and Howard. I haven't seen all the stats or watched the games like he has, but that would be a very nice cherry on top.


3.    Sacramento. Sacramento is a good basketball city. It's not Los Angeles or New York, but it also not Cleveland, Salt Lake or Denver. LeBron could get free agents to go there. It's a good place to live both weather wise and market/sponsor wise. There are good fans there. If LeBron goes there an wins just one title, he will be a God to them forever (same applies for other teams like the Knicks or Wizards, but fans like the Laker fans would not be happy with just 1 or 2 titles).

In conclusion, I like the Kings. Perhaps they are the perfect compromise. Its a good place to be (sponsors, etc) [but not as good LA (Clippers) or NYC (Knicks)]. It has a good front office (better than the Knicks, but not better than the Heat or the Clippers). The Kings have that "look how good I made them" factor (I love this about the Wizards as well. But staying with Miami or going to the Clippers would make them the automatic favorites. ) 

The pros of LeBron going to the Kings are:

• The Kings front office is no longer a mess and has formed a good foundation.
• Cousins may be the perfect Robin for LBJ's Batman.
• Sacramento is a good city all around (good weather, good marketing, etc...). 
• The expectation would be (relatively) low. (The only championship they've won was in 1951 when they were the Rochester Royals. If LeBron goes to the Lakers, he has to win  5 more rings to be considered the best ever. If he goes to the Kings and wins just one or two there, he's set. -"Think of what it would do for LeBron's Legacy to take a team from the worst in a tough conference to a title. I think if LeBron just teams up with some like CP3... it adds further credibility issues to his legacy...")

And one last quote from my main man Scott to wrap it up-

"Two other tidbits, LeBron offered to buy the kings (jokingly) to keep them in Sac and loves Kevin Johnson and showed his support for Sacramento. It's not a HUGE stretch to say he likes the team and could go there. Also, in one year, OKC went from 23-59 (worse the the kings will do this year) to 50-32 with some growth and maturity... If LeBron wants to prove he is the Man, he could come to Sac, play with DeMarcus Cousins and take the league by storm. Tell me what team anywhere is suited to stop those two. Houston with Howard? Cousins Kills him. Indiana? Maybe, but even Hibbert struggles against Cousins.... Hibbert can't stop him."

James joking about owning the Kings - http://www.news10.net/video/2088817229001/1/Kevin-Johnson-asks-LeBron-James-to-buy-Kings