Lebron James is doing a great job of carrying the Cleveland Cavaliers on his back this year. He continually leads the team in scoring and rebounding, while the role players haven’t kept up their end of the bargain. I recently read an article where Charles Barkley and Brevin Knight were commenting on how James wasn’t at the level of Kobe Bryant and Allen Iverson. I did a quick check in the NBA history books and I couldn’t find Barkley’s or Knight’s name under past NBA champions.
I still believe you judge a player on two things: how much he improves the team and the number of championships he wins. This being said, you must have at least two stars on a team to bring home NBA titles. If you look at past champions, you will find this to be the case. (Jordan/Pippen, Kobe/Shaq, Bird/Mchale, Magic/Jabbar)
The year the Los Angeles Lakers traded O’Neal, the Lakers became a .500 ball club. If you look at this year, comparing James to Bryant and Iverson, Lebron can stand side by side with both of them. I would agree that Iverson and Bryant, at this point in their careers, are pure shooters. James is a better all around player. He is a scorer, passer and rebounder. The NBA media likes to evaluate players on how many points they score. In the long run, Lebron’s team play will bring Cleveland the title. The Cavaliers need to continue to develop the supporting cast for this NBA great.
