Long Live King James: LeBron Making A Case for GOAT
Do you remember when LeBron James got drafted and everyone was wetting their pants over how good he was going to be? Remember the Nike ads with the lion and the throne? Remember the Witness t-shirts? It’s been a long ride for the King James bandwagon — and of course for the King himself. And now here he is — 32 years old — having one of the best playoffs ever. What we’re witnessing now is far and away the most incredible performance we’ve seen out of him in his storied career — and that’s saying a lot for the most hyped player in NBA history.
Let’s look at his stat line.
- 313 total points
- .560 shooting %
- .434 three-point %
- 34.8 PPG, 9 rebounds, 7.1 assists
- 2.1 steals
- 1.3 blocks
- 42.3 minutes
Why He’s (Probably) the Best
313 total points is an insane number. Keep in mind the Cavs have yet to lose a game in the playoffs. Meaning Cleveland has only played 9 games. NINE GAMES. LeBron’s 313 is the highest point total through nine games since Michael Jordan in 1992 — not to mention the highest playoff total for any player over 32 years old. He’s on another level right now. And the crazy part is, he’s showing not any signs of slowing down; in fact, he seems to be warming up. At this point, James is making a legitimate push to be considered the greatest player of all time.
LeBron James’ otherworldly playoff performance has people talking right now.
Now just let me say this is a painful conversation to be having with you. As did — I’m assuming — most NBA fans who grew up in the 80s and 90s, I worshipped Michael Jordan. I bought my first pair of J’s when I was six. And I still have them, even though they no longer fit. Most likely, I’ll give them to my child if they’re into it (here’s hoping my first child is an NBA star cause I sure wasn’t). Or I might skip the kid and get them bronzed. That’s how integral MJ was to my childhood — integral enough that I’d spend a good deal of money to have an old pair of shoes encased in a non-precious alloy.
I can’t recall the amount of times I replayed ‘The Shot’ on my driveway when everyone else was asleep — making that weird ‘crowd goes wild’ noise after sinking it on my third try. I even wrote Michael a letter expressing my everlasting fandom to him (he responded by sending me that iconic poster of him with his arms stretched out). It was seriously a shining moment of my youth.
So to be sitting here writing an article about how LeBron James might very well be on his way to becoming the greatest of all time… let’s just say it’s giving me stress hives and a little bit of diarrhea. But my pants will just have to endure because this is important.
LeBron is playing in a league of his own right now. On Wednesday night, he embarrassed every defender the Celtics put in front of him on the way to a dominant 117-104 win over the Celtics in round 1 of the Eastern Conference finals. James continued his postseason onslaught with 38 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. That marks his fifth straight game with 35 points or more. MVP doesn’t even begin to describe him.
Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue sang LeBron’s praises after Wednesday’s game, saying, “He’s playing at a high level. And that’s the reason why we’re riding him so much. When LeBron’s playing at that level other guys just have to be solid and we have a good chance to win.”
Good chance? Ha. There’s not a team in the league that can stop the Cavs when their star is playing like this. Boston did their very best to slow the 6’8 forward down. But in the end, their best wasn’t good enough. LeBron backed down defenders to set up 15-foot fade away jumpers. He took defenders off the dribble without issue and sliced through double-teams on the way to layups. What can they do, but hope for Bron Bron to slow down or get injured — which seem unlikely with how strong he looks right now?
Game 2 kicks off Friday night in Boston. So we’ll see how Big Green adapts to the juggernaut on the other bench. But let’s just say, it doesn’t bode well for them.
Since Game 5 of the 2016 NBA finals, Cleveland has won a franchise-record 12 straight playoff games. They currently hold a 33-4 playoff record against Eastern Conference opponents (16-3 on the road). No doubt, the whole team is coming together in a big way right now.
But they owe it to King James. They owe everything to him right now. Cleveland — and don’t let me jinx it — is on their way to a repeat championship. LeBron is on his way into the history books with an unrivaled performance in the playoffs. And it honestly looks like he’s just getting started.
