Quote:
Originally Posted by fidstar-poker
I never understand the downplaying of what LeBron has done.
MJ's game can stand on it's own two feet without the need to bash other players.
I try to state facts, often STATISTICAL facts, that some people aren't aware of, like this:
Lebron turns teammates into play-finishers by lowering their APG (playmaking) and increasing their assisted rate (play-finishing):
..................................................APG, ASSIST %..... ASSISTED RATE
Wade before Lebron (04'-10'):..... 6.6,
34.8%..................29.2% <-- links to bballref data
Wade with... Lebron (11'-14'):..... 4.7,
25.5%..................40.3%
Irving before Lebron (12'-14'):.... 5.8,
33.2%..................31.9%
Irving with... Lebron.. (15'-17'):.. 5.3,
27.1%..................32.7%
Bosh before Lebron (04'-10'):...... 2.2,
10.5%..................55.8%
Bosh with... Lebron (11'-14'):...... 1.6,
8.0% ...................71.6%
Love before Lebron (09'-14'):...... 2.5,
13.0%..................62.7%
Love with ...Lebron (15'-17'):...... 2.2,
11.0%..................77.9%
Mo Will before Lebron (05'-08'):.. 5.7,
30.2%..................39.2%
Mo Will with... Lebron (09'-10'):.. 4.6,
22.3%..................47.6%
Since teammates get less assists alongside lebron, his
teams rank low in assists every year, therefore requiring excessive supporting
talent to win (aka team-hopping).
Let's look at the real-life example: Kobe won 2 rings with Pau as 2nd option, whereas Lebron reduced All-NBA Love and Bosh into weak 3rd options, and needed a perimeter stud (Wade/Kyrie) to be 2nd option - Lebron simply needed more help to overcome the reduction of his PF, whereas Kobe did not.
Unfortunately, by reducing teammates to play-finishers, Lebron promotes a sophomoric brand of basketball that can't succeed against the best playoff teams, who invariably play a superior brand of basketball.. Guys like Patty Mills and Boris Diaw are tasked with MAKING PLAYS for the Spurs - they aren't just play-finishers like Shumpert and JR Smith (who are actually more talented)..
Now why does lebron lower his teammates' assists, while increasing their assisted rate, effectively turning the all-stars listed above into play-finishers?.. Lebron scores like a point guard: that means ON HIS OWN via live dribble, and therefore unassisted by teammates, while using a
high time of possession.. This point guard style (low assisted rate, high time of possession) is inherently suboptimal
when it comes from the forward position: it adds a 2nd low-assisted, high time of possession player to the floor IN ADDITION to the existing point guard, which gives teammates less opportunity to assist and less time with the ball than other teams whose forwards have
normal assisted rates and time of possession..
Ultimately, the stats prove that teammates have less time with the ball alongside Lebron than other supporting casts, because Lebron reduces the time available for them by turning the forward position into a 2nd point guard.. Using 2 point guards leads to a weak brand of basketball, poor teamwork, and ultimately, underperformance in the playoffs.
FYI...
..................................................APG, ASSIST %
Pippen with... Jordan 91'-93':...... 6.5,
24.5%
Pippen w/out Jordan 94'-95':...... 5.4,
23.7%
Pippen with... Jordan 96'-98':...... 5.8,
25.1%
In contrast to Lebron's ball-dominance, jordan was a good catch-and-shoot player, while also scoring a lot of points via slashing and quick moves from the triple-threat.. This type of off-ball scoring is ASSISTED, so it promotes playmaking from teammates and team assists, while also fitting into any structured, high-level offense..
Good teamwork is why jordan's teammates played to full capacity alongside him, which means the TEAM played to full capacity and virtually never underachieved, lost as the favorite, or lost when it was 50/50.. otoh, lebron's lesser teamwork has prevented teammates from playing to full capacity, which has led to team underperformance like losing as the favorite and losing when it was
50/50.. the goat should never lose as the favorite, or when it's 50/50.. certainly, being the goat should break any tie