Cavs: Lebron is mentally weak

[ambchang]

Not from, but from his mouthpiece Windhorst

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/11...t-weapon-brain

Consider what you know of the 2011 NBA Finals. And now consider it, instead, like this: In what will likely be remembered as the low point of his career, James is miserable for several games against the Dallas Mavericks -- including a vitally important Game 4 collapse when he somehow scores just eight points in 46 minutes. At times during that game it appears as if James is in a trance.

"What is he thinking?" the basketball world wonders.

James -- with two les and counting, and four straight trips to the Finals -- can admit today what he's thinking in 2011: He's thinking of everything. Everything good, and everything bad. In 2011, he isn't just playing against the Mavs; he's also battling the demons of a year earlier, when he failed in a series against the Boston Celtics as the pressure of the moment beat him down. It's Game 5 of the 2010 Eastern Conference semifinals, and it is, to this point, perhaps the most incomprehensible game of James' career. His performance is so lockjawed, so devoid of rhythm, the world crafts its own narrative, buying into unfounded and ridiculous rumors because they seem more plausible than his performance.

James, though, never fully deals with any of that. Instead, he changes teams. Changes cities. Changes coaches. Changes owners. Changes teammates. Changes uniforms. Changes climate. Wipe the slate clean, and maybe, for once, he can leave the past behind.

Instead, when it all happens again a year later, James' recall turns against him, yet again, like an awful sequel to an awful original movie -- everything happening out of James' control, the awful computer in his head winning the inner monologue.

"There are a lot of things that go through my mind during a game," James says. "Sometimes I cloud my mind too much. I get to thinking about the game too much instead of just playing."

[Clipper Nation]

^ tl;dr

There is all of that. But there is also one other quality, one that James himself has somehow managed to keep hidden for the past decade, despite our seemingly insatiable desire to uncover -- and wring dry -- most everything about the man: the memory. It is perhaps one of James' greatest gifts. And while those who watch James are typically impressed with how he uses his speed and skill to generate highlight plays, those who know James or spend a lot of time with him are more frequently blown away by the almost curious power of his mind.

So what does it mean? What it seems to suggest -- at least the part of it that James will discuss -- is that if you give up the baseline to James on a drive in November 2011 and he's playing against you in March 2013, the Heat small forward will remember it. It means that if you tried to change your pick-and-roll coverage in the middle of the fourth quarter of the 2008 playoffs, he'll be ready for you to try it again in 2014, even if you're coaching a different team. It also means that if you had a good game the last time you played against Milwaukee because James got you a few good looks in the first quarter, the next time you play the Bucks you can count on James looking for you early in the game. Because, you know, the memory never forgets.


"I can usually remember plays in situations a couple of years back -- quite a few years back sometimes," James says. "I'm able to calibrate them throughout a game to the situation I'm in, to know who has it going on our team, what position to put him in.


"I'm lucky to have a photographic memory," he will add, "and to have learned how to work with it."

The Memory

[spurraider21]

clearly it wasn't a td;dr thing if you post a quote of equal length

[Clipper Nation]

clearly it wasn't a td;dr thing if you post a quote of equal length

#Philooooo

[spurraider21]

^deflecting

[JohnnyMax]

Clippernation

[Clipper Nation]

Clippernation

Yeah, I stay slapping the haters

[RsxPiimp]

I've always thought Lebron is mentally weak, and that was true in 2011 but overall he's been pretty impressive in Game 7's and elimination games.

[Ginobilly]

Lebron has always been scared of loosing. He's always worried( worries about fg percentage like a little , pop would just tell him to shoot the damn thing if he was on the spurs) about how his legacy is going to perceived by the public when all is said and done. A true Alpha wouldn't of left the Heat and would of Avenged the loss to the Spurs. He's afraid of loosing to the Spurs again. A true alpha leader is not afraid of anything. You lost but you gave it your all! Lebron is missing the, "I rather die on feet standing, fighting, rather than kneeling to my enemy in order to survive." A true alpha takes risks, gambles in the face of the opposition, even if he's over-matched by a much stronger enemy, he never accepts defeat. Point is Lebron is afraid of going down fighting. Lebron would probably be scared of being drafted for ww2 cause of his beta like mentality, while somebody like Jordan would accept the challenge of being known as the best solider in the history of warfare.

confiscating some kids phone because somebody dunked on me in a scrimmage and might make me look bad

[HI-FI]

not a shocker he's mentally weak, he has his insecurities that he masks with y moments. i doubt he has a photographic memory either. still a legendary player but not an alpha or clutch like MJ.

[baseline bum]