Forward thinking: Celebrating LeBron’s greatness

[duncan228]

It's long, hit the link for it.

Forward thinking: Celebrating LeBron’s greatness (http://www.nba.com/2010/news/05/01/lebron.mvp/index.html)
By John Hareas, for NBA.com

How great is LeBron James? The back-to-back NBA MVPs speak volumes (LBJ joins Pettit, Bird, Mailman and Duncan as the only multiple winners in league history at the forward position) but so does the endorsement of legendary forwards as well:

“He’s one guy in the league that I think he’ll probably be better than all of us when it’s all said and done.” — Larry Bird

“LeBron reminds me of Oscar who controlled many facets of the game.” —Dolph Schayes

“His (basketball) IQ is one of the highest I’ve ever seen.” —Bernard King

“I don’t know of any forward in the history of the game who has ever had his athletic skills and his attributes that he has.” — Jerry Lucas

“His ability in the open court—he reminds me so much when he goes to the basket of Julius Erving.” — Billy Cunningham

“I haven’t seen anybody like him. It’s like Karl Malone out at the point running a team. Are you kidding? [laughs]” — Julius Erving

On the eve of LeBron’s MVP announcement, some of the greatest forwards in NBA history—Larry Bird, Charles Barkley, Rick Barry, Billy Cunningham, Julius Erving, John Havlicek, Bernard King, Jerry Lucas, Kevin McHale, Scottie Pippen, Dolph Schayes and Dominique Wilkins celebrated LeBron’s greatness through qualities that all winning players/MVPs must have—leadership, physicality, basketball IQ, selflessness/sacrifice, competitive drive, versatility, dealing with pressure, will to dominate and the will to win.

Keep Reading... (http://www.nba.com/2010/news/05/01/lebron.mvp/index.html)

[milkshakeballa]

My god. The kid hasn't won SHIT yet what a fucking joke.

[Gutter92]

My god. The kid hasn't won SHIT yet what a fucking joke.

Yet he's still better than Kobe.

[tlongII]

He's by far the best player in the league and will go down as one of the top 5 players ever to play the game.

[milkshakeballa]

yet he's still better than kobe.


no shit dumbfuck. What does this have to do with kobe u fucking scrub.

He hasn't won shit

[Cry Havoc]

My god. The kid hasn't won SHIT yet what a fucking joke.

LeBron took a team with no one (except Mo Williams :lol ) on it to the NBA Finals.

Kobe took a team with no one on it (except Lamar Odom) to the NBA draft.

Keep the hate up. It suits you as a jealous Lakers fan who can't accept that their star's time has passed. :tu

[himat]

no shit dumbfuck. What does this have to do with kobe u fucking scrub.

He hasn't won shit

He's only 25. He's helped a city that hasn't experienced winning at least have the thoughts of winning a championship.

As much as I hate how LeBron has been handed this goldenboy status he's done a lot in very little time.

You're so stupid. All you can do is cuss people out and can't back up what you say.

[milkshakeballa]

WHAT IN THE FUCK DOES KOBE HaVE to do wit this conversation?

hoyl fuck do you guys care about kobe that much?

jesus christ

[TampaDude]

"LeBron James is the best basketball player in the world."
-- Charles Barkley


That pretty much sums it up right there.

[milkshakeballa]

He's only 25. He's helped a city that hasn't experienced winning at least have the thoughts of winning a championship.

As much as I hate how LeBron has been handed this goldenboy status he's done a lot in very little time.

You're so stupid. All you can do is cuss people out and can't back up what you say.

who in the fuck did he beat in the east en route to the title?

that was the worst team to ever make it to the championship in thirty years....


he hasn't won shit.

is he the best player in the game today? sure i'm 100% behind that


already an all time great? go fuck yourselves lack of bball iq idiots

[himat]

who in the fuck did he beat in the east en route to the title?

that was the worst team to ever make it to the championship in thirty years....


he hasn't won shit.

is he the best player in the game today? sure i'm 100% behind that


already an all time great? go fuck yourselves lack of bball iq idiots

:lmao You're a dumbass. You just shot yourself in the foot again dumbass. "Thats the worst team to ever make it to the championship in thirty years..."

Yet LBJ lead them there. That shows how great he is dumbass. You are a moron.

:lmao At you're "I'm smart and everyone else is stupid attitude." Look in the mirror A-hole.

[RedsLakers24]

LeBron took a team with no one (except Mo Williams :lol ) on it to the NBA Finals.

Kobe took a team with no one on it (except Lamar Odom) to the NBA draft.

Keep the hate up. It suits you as a jealous Lakers fan who can't accept that their star's time has passed. :tu

LOL Comparing the East to the West :lol

[Goran Dragic]

LeBron took a team with no one (except Mo Williams :lol ) on it to the NBA Finals.



Mo Williams wasn't on that finals team, Spurs fan.

[himat]

LOL Comparing the East to the West :lol

:lol Fair comment, but you have to admit one thing. (First I just want to reitterate that I like Kobe more than LeBron.)

Kobe has acted like a sore loser so many times when he had piss poor teammates in comparison to LeBron. I don't think people can argue that LBJ has worse teammates than Kobe this year (in fact he has better teammates IMO this year) but in years past that holds true.

[Goran Dragic]

I'd still take Kobe's supporting cast over Lebrons

Pau Gasol >>>>>> anyone on either team not named Lebron or Kobe.

[TampaDude]

who in the fuck did he beat in the east en route to the title?

that was the worst team to ever make it to the championship in thirty years....


http://tinypic.com/e12o7t.jpg-see-what-you-did-there.jpg

[milkshakeballa]

:lmao You're a dumbass. You just shot yourself in the foot again dumbass. "Thats the worst team to ever make it to the championship in thirty years..."

Yet LBJ lead them there. That shows how great he is dumbass. You are a moron.

:lmao At you're "I'm smart and everyone else is stupid attitude." Look in the mirror A-hole.

braindead?

who did he beat en route to the finals?

kthanx

[himat]

I'd still take Kobe's supporting cast over Lebrons

Pau Gasol >>>>>> anyone on either team not named Lebron or Kobe.

Skills wise, yes? Shaq is still more dominant in my opinion though. And Andrew Bynum (check Game 6 injury) gets too injured to be a consistent threat.

[Goran Dragic]

Skills wise, yes? Shaq is still more dominant in my opinion though. And Andrew Bynum (check Game 6 injury) gets too injured to be a consistent threat.


You'd take Shaq over Gasol?

[himat]

braindead?

who did he beat en route to the finals?

kthanx

:lol Is that all you got? Trying to prove me wrong by bringing my favorite team into this.

He beat the Detroit Pistons. And you're point is what? Now you can't even stay on the original topic because you're too stupid.

LBJ almost carried them single handedly against us. Embarrassing for us? Yes, but it shows you how good he is.

What's your next comment? Don't worry I can prove you wrong in anything you say.

[milkshakeballa]

:lol is that all you got? Trying to prove me wrong by bringing my favorite team into this.

He beat the detroit pistons. And you're point is what? Now you can't even stay on the original topic because you're too stupid.

Lbj almost carried them single handedly against us. Embarrassing for us? Yes, but it shows you how good he is.

What's your next comment? Don't worry i can prove you wrong in anything you say.

1+1 = 2

[milkshakeballa]

Skills wise, yes? Shaq is still more dominant in my opinion though. And Andrew Bynum (check Game 6 injury) gets too injured to be a consistent threat.

:lol:lol:lol

[milkshakeballa]

:lol Is that all you got? Trying to prove me wrong by bringing my favorite team into this.

He beat the Detroit Pistons. And you're point is what? Now you can't even stay on the original topic because you're too stupid.

LBJ almost carried them single handedly against us. Embarrassing for us? Yes, but it shows you how good he is.

What's your next comment? Don't worry I can prove you wrong in anything you say.


Nuggets > Jazz amidoinitrite?

jazz up 4-2 but nuggets goin win....amidoinitrite?

[himat]

You'd take Shaq over Gasol?

:lol No way. Especially at this stage of their careers, but I still think that Shaq can expose Gasol/Bynum's soft mentality if he plays well enough.

Did you watch the LA Cleveland Christmas game? If you did you could probably see why I think Shaq can still be very dangerous, even to a front line as good as Artest, Odom, Bynum, and Gasol.

[himat]

:lol:lol:lol

Do you know the meaning of dominant? At 38 he can still makes coaches alter there game plans for him.

Again. That the best you got? Putting a bunch of smileys shows how stupid you are again.

[TampaDude]

Mo Williams wasn't on that finals team, Spurs fan.

Yeah...he was probably thinking of Gibson. Still, LeBron basically took a team of scrubs to the NBA Finals. Game 5 at Detroit in the ECF was legendary...48 points, including the final 25, for the Cavs, to take a 3-2 series lead.

Anyone who doesn't recognize LeBron James as the greatest player in the league today is just kidding themselves.

[himat]

Nuggets > Jazz amidoinitrite?

jazz up 4-2 but nuggets goin win....amidoinitrite?

The Nuggets had better talent than the Jazz going into the series, especially with 2 of their starters injured.

So that's why I picked them. The Nuggets>Jazz talent wise still but they played like crap. If they replayed the series I'd still pick them.

Now did the Jazz play better than the Nuggets? Absolutely. I never said they didn't.

Next.

[himat]

1+1 = 2

Is that your first logical statement? :wow

Took you long enough.

[RedsLakers24]

Yeah...he was probably thinking of Gibson. Still, LeBron basically took a team of scrubs to the NBA Finals. Game 5 at Detroit in the ECF was legendary...48 points, including the final 25, for the Cavs, to take a 3-2 series lead.

Anyone who doesn't recognize LeBron James as the greatest player in the league today is just kidding themselves.

No one is saying hes not the best player today, its just that what he did was nothing more then just beating the east teams to advance to the finals. The only team they had to beat was detroit, and detroit always chokes in the ECF. I cant see Lebron take that team to the finals if he had to face SA, PHX, Dallas, Utah, Houston, in the playoffs.

[milkshakeballa]

Yeah...he was probably thinking of Gibson. Still, LeBron basically took a team of scrubs to the NBA Finals. Game 5 at Detroit in the ECF was legendary...48 points, including the final 25, for the Cavs, to take a 3-2 series lead.

Anyone who doesn't recognize LeBron James as the greatest player in the league today is just kidding themselves.

and who here is disputing this?

its the recognizing him already as an all time great that is a fucking joke

[Goran Dragic]

:lol No way. Especially at this stage of their careers, but I still think that Shaq can expose Gasol/Bynum's soft mentality if he plays well enough.

Did you watch the LA Cleveland Christmas game? If you did you could probably see why I think Shaq can still be very dangerous, even to a front line as good as Artest, Odom, Bynum, and Gasol.


I see you're point there and I agree that Shaq can still make an impact in ways Gasol can't, my point is that Gasol is a way better sidekick than anyone Lebron has or has ever had.

[Goran Dragic]

I'm sure if Lebron demanded a trade to a big market team such as the Lakers like Kobe did when he was too much of a pussy to accept the challenge of being drafted by the Hornets, he'd have a championship by now.

[TampaDude]

No one is saying hes not the best player today, its just that what he did was nothing more then just beating the east teams to advance to the finals. The only team they had to beat was detroit, and detroit always chokes in the ECF. I cant see Lebron take that team to the finals if he had to face SA, PHX, Dallas, Utah, Houston, in the playoffs.

I can, this year...the Cavs can beat any team in the West in 6 games or less, including the Lakers.

[RedsLakers24]

I can, this year...the Cavs can beat any team in the West in 6 games or less, including the Lakers.

but we are not talking about this years team, are we?, we are talking about the "scrubs" lebron took to the finals

[Daddy_Of_All_Trolls]

I'm sure if Lebron demanded a trade to a big market team such as the Lakers like Kobe did when he was too much of a pussy to accept the challenge of being drafted by the Hornets, he'd have a championship by now.

I schooled MiamiHeat on this already, he's my bitch. Check the links in my signature and see how wrong you are. Hornets drafted Kobe with the intent to trade him for Vlade Divac. It was a pre draft deal with the Lakers.

Usually, someone mentions Kobe in a LeBron thread, or vice versa and all hell breaks out. Enjoy these two while they around, you won't see many like them for years to come.

Back on topic. LeBron truly is the best player in the game today. Some greats lead teams to titles, MJ 6 times, TD 4 times. Some players share glory for the chip; Garnett, Pierce, Allen.

Some great players have never won a title; Dirk, Malone, Barkley.

So far, LeBron has no titles. If he can play to age 35, he likely will get at least one, probably three. More if he's fortunate.

Since LeBron has won nothing, but his career is far from over, he still belongs with the "chokers" with a very reasonable chance to break from that mold.

So, bottom line is, LeBron can't be judged yet. He can be crticized a bit as long as he is ringless, but that should change. Possibly this year.

[ffadicted]

i find it funny that people use the fact that lebron beat a bunch o shitty teams on his way to a finals sweep as a testament to his greatness. Come on, i know the guy is good, but find a better argument please

[Goran Dragic]

So he refused to work out with other teams because he wanted to go to LA. It's safe to say he wouldn't have 4 championships if he were drafted by a team like Cleveland that had nothing when they drafted Lebron.

[Cry Havoc]

i find it funny that people use the fact that lebron beat a bunch o shitty teams on his way to a finals sweep as a testament to his greatness. Come on, i know the guy is good, but find a better argument please

I guess the fact that he's averaging 28 7 and 7 for his career isn't obvious enough for you? Or 30 7.3 and 8.6 this year?

[BRHornet45]

I hope he has a career ending injury. the dude hasn't won anything, yet the media worships the ground he walks on.

[ffadicted]

I guess the fact that he's averaging 28 7 and 7 for his career isn't obvious enough for you? Or 30 7.3 and 8.6 this year?

see: "i know he's good"

[The_Dude]

I hope he has a career ending injury. the dude hasn't won anything, yet the media worships the ground he walks on.

Did you say the same thing about Jordan? It took him 7 years to win an NBA title.

[BRHornet45]

Did you say the same thing about Jordan? It took him 7 years to win an NBA title.

son not even the media worshiped Jordan the way they do Lebron this early in his career. Let the guy actually accomplish something other than get swept in the finals, then they can start worshiping him.

[The_Dude]

son not even the media worshiped Jordan the way they do Lebron this early in his career. Let the guy actually accomplish something other than get swept in the finals, then they can start worshiping him.

Spoken like a true 14 year old who never experienced the media hype around Jordan.

[Cry Havoc]

see: "i know he's good"

If 30 7 and 8 is good, does that make Duncan average? Parker shit? Manu horrible?

Seriously, if 30 7 and 8 is "good", what are you doing watching the NBA?

[TampaDude]

but we are not talking about this years team, are we?, we are talking about the "scrubs" lebron took to the finals

Okay, you meant the 2007 Cavs...yeah...we saw what happened to the 2007 Cavs in the Finals.

[BRHornet45]

Spoken like a true 14 year old who never experienced the media hype around Jordan.

dude roll back the clock and look at Michael Jordan whenever he was in his first 5-7 years ... sure there was hype, but it was NOTHING like what they do for Lebron. the media has pushed this guy into superstar status from day one before he was even in the league. the whole "we are all witnesses" campaign is hyped up as if we are in the presence of Jesus Christ .... Jordan got hype, but nothing like this.

[TampaDude]

dude roll back the clock and look at Michael Jordan whenever he was in his first 5-7 years ... sure there was hype, but it was NOTHING like what they do for Lebron. the media has pushed this guy into superstar status from day one before he was even in the league. the whole "we are all witnesses" campaign is hyped up as if we are in the presence of Jesus Christ .... Jordan got hype, but nothing like this.

Different era.

[BRHornet45]

Different era.

son that is true. Jordan played whenever the NBA was still a legit sports competition for the most part and wasn't the sports entertainment/controlled circus that it is now.

[The_Dude]

dude roll back the clock and look at Michael Jordan whenever he was in his first 5-7 years ... sure there was hype, but it was NOTHING like what they do for Lebron. the media has pushed this guy into superstar status from day one before he was even in the league. the whole "we are all witnesses" campaign is hyped up as if we are in the presence of Jesus Christ .... Jordan got hype, but nothing like this.

That's a product of how times have changed, BRfool. Look at what ESPN was when Jordan was around, and look at what ESPN is now. It's an entirely different monster. Add in the powerful effects of social media and the internet, it's no freaking surprise that someone like LeBron has been hyped up. The media worshipped Jordan just like they worship LeBron, except its easier to see the exposure to LeBron because of the above-mentioned statements.

He's 25 years old. He's lived up to the hype.

[BRHornet45]

see my post above The_Douche

[ffadicted]

If 30 7 and 8 is good, does that make Duncan average? Parker shit? Manu horrible?

Seriously, if 30 7 and 8 is "good", what are you doing watching the NBA?

lol look at this guy. I just don't want to suck Lebron's dick and rave about how amazing he is, whether it's true or not. If you guys enjoy doing that, go to town

[The_Dude]

see my post above The_Douche

Just your normal BS ranting when you run out of things to say. Go Hornets!!

[BRHornet45]

Just your normal BS ranting when you run out of things to say. Go Hornets!!

son do you HONESTLY think that the NBA is a legit sports competition? all jokes aside.

[Cry Havoc]

lol look at this guy. I just don't want to suck Lebron's dick and rave about how amazing he is, whether it's true or not. If you guys enjoy doing that, go to town

So, recognizing that a player (who's putting up unheard of numbers in the modern era) is a tier above most other players = sucking his dick? If that's the case, you're just a Spurs homer and nothing more.

A guy doesn't need to wear Spurs colors for me to think he's a fantastic player.

[The_Dude]

son do you HONESTLY think that the NBA is a legit sports competition? all jokes aside.

I honestly think you're a terrible internet personality.

[Cry Havoc]

son do you HONESTLY think that the NBA is a legit sports competition? all jokes aside.

So why do you watch it, then?

[Gutter92]

If I didn't know any better, I'd say milkshakeballa is mad that LeBron won MVP ;D

[Muser]

My god. The kid hasn't won SHIT yet what a fucking joke.

:lmao u mad?

I guess it was a joke when MJ won his first MVP in '88 because he hadn't won shit.

[BRHornet45]

So why do you watch it, then?

son I never said the NBA was boring to watch. its entertainment and comical at times. I guess its the same reason why millions of people watch professional wrestling. Its simply just good, fun, controlled entertainment not to be taken seriously.

[j-money24]

I'd still take Kobe's supporting cast over Lebrons

Pau Gasol >>>>>> anyone on either team not named Lebron or Kobe.

Thats true, the Lakers 2nd best player is better then the Cavs 2nd best player.. But the rest from 3-12, the cavs will wipe the floor with the Lakers 3-12 players.

[The_Dude]

thats true, the lakers 2nd best player is better then the cavs 2nd best player.. But the rest from 3-12, the cavs will wipe the floor with the lakers 3-12 players.

lol wut?

[duncan228]

With MVPs in hand, James’ legacy still needs titles (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=nba_com-james.mvp-20100502)
By Steve Aschburner
NBA.com

The sky’s the limit for this guy.

You hear that said all the time about LeBron James, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ star forward who, in a public celebration Sunday at the University of Akron, was named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player in 2009-10 for the second consecutive season. Just the other day, for instance, Cavs coach Mike Brown said: “He can continue to grow by leaps and bounds for as many years as he has left in this league. … The sky’s the limit for him.”

Or as James himself said in accepting the award again in his hometown at a party open to all: “The way I approach the game, I know the sky’s the limit with an individual accolade like this.”

You hear it so much—the sky’s the limit for this guy—you start to wonder if maybe it’s backwards. What if LBJ is the outlier, the one at the extreme, the force establishing the boundaries for all others and everything else, including the sky? As in:

This guy’s the limit for the sky.

Say it fast and it starts to sound right.

Keep Reading... (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=nba_com-james.mvp-20100502)

[himat]

lol wut?

He's saying that Cavs' 3-12 players are better than Lakers' 3-12 players.

3 meaning 3rd and 12 meaning 12th.

[ffadicted]

So, recognizing that a player (who's putting up unheard of numbers in the modern era) is a tier above most other players = sucking his dick? If that's the case, you're just a Spurs homer and nothing more.

A guy doesn't need to wear Spurs colors for me to think he's a fantastic player.

I don't understand why you're trying to force lebron down my throat lol He's the best player in the world, would love him on the spurs, but there's a difference between admitting that when asked, and treating him like we are blessed to "witness" his greatness and mightyness, the king of kings, saying he'll be the best ever, etc...

That's exactly WHY I like the spurs and Tim. Quiet superstars

[SomeCallMeTim]

Do you know the meaning of dominant? At 38 he can still makes coaches alter there game plans for him.

I reckon guys like Korver and even Boykins cause coaches to alter gameplans to deal with them. Doesn't mean they're dominant, just unique players with some very specialized skills.

I think Shaq is better than that but there are some similarities. Not a dominant player anymore by any stretch but a very useful role player.

[Cry Havoc]

I don't understand why you're trying to force lebron down my throat lol He's the best player in the world, would love him on the spurs, but there's a difference between admitting that when asked, and treating him like we are blessed to "witness" his greatness and mightyness, the king of kings, saying he'll be the best ever, etc...

That's exactly WHY I like the spurs and Tim. Quiet superstars

How am I trying to force him down your throat? This isn't my thread, and you aren't obligated to read my posts. What's your obsession with fellatio?

[The_Dude]

He's saying that Cavs' 3-12 players are better than Lakers' 3-12 players.

3 meaning 3rd and 12 meaning 12th.

I don't know if you're being serious or joking, or you're just an idiot.

LOL WUT = a sarcastic response to his post. The Cavs are not better 3 thru 12.

Bynum, Gasol, and Odom are all better than Shaq/Z/Andy/Jamison.

[Gutter92]

The Laker fans on realgm are no different from here...

they discredit the supporting cast when comparing Kobe and Lebron, yet when asked why they'll beat the Cavs in the Finals...."we're a better team" and shit like that...its 1 or the other homies...

[Killakobe81]

Lebron and his fans congrats it was well deserved ...now win a title LBJ it's the only thing left that matters ...

[Killakobe81]

I don't understand why you're trying to force lebron down my throat lol He's the best player in the world, would love him on the spurs, but there's a difference between admitting that when asked, and treating him like we are blessed to "witness" his greatness and mightyness, the king of kings, saying he'll be the best ever, etc...

That's exactly WHY I like the spurs and Tim. Quiet superstars

Co-signed.

He MAY be the GOAT when it's all said and done ...but cant we just WAIT until it happens first?

I was all ready to bear witness when they went to the Finals but the Spurs REMINDED me that he was NOT ready ...

MAYBE this time he is ...