| The Truth On LeBron's Late Game Performances Authored by Dennis Silva II - May 25, 2007 - 6:11 pm
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Fans will hate. They will love. They are often never satisfied, and their expectations are often irrational and downright implausible.
So as LeBron James has listened to the endless amount of talk debating whether he should pass, score or flat-out takeover games in the final seconds, here's my advice for him - stop.
Stop listening. Shut off the television. Put down the newspapers. It doesn't matter what they think.
While his team is down 0-2 in the Eastern Conference Finals to the Detroit Pistons, LeBron is 2 for 2 when it comes to his performance in the closing seconds of both respective games.
He made the right decision to pass to a wide-open Donyell Marshall in Game 1. He drew the defense, spun and delivered a perfect assist to Marshall, a 40-percent playoff 3-point shooter entering the series.
James was also correct in his decision to drive and attack, trailing by a point, in the closing seconds of Game 2, which ultimately ended up as a wild fling towards the basket in hopes of drawing a foul against Rip Hamilton.
While in fact there was contact, the refs felt there wasn't enough to blow the whistle. And they were right.
LeBron's mistake was not bullying further into the contact. He threw up a fallaway, not driving his 6-8 frame into Hamilton and other defenders. He backed off, albeit slightly, enough to where the shot itself was hardly deterred.
LeBron is the type of superstar all NBA loyalists have craved ever since Michael Jordan decided enough was enough.
He can score at will. He can rebound, pass and defend. He's exactly what the NBA needs.
But, more than any of that, he's a playmaker. He gets a thrill out of creating for his teammates and seeing them succeed. It's been a great, unappreciated trait of his since his first professional contest against the Sacramento Kings.
In any other world, should the likes of Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Anderson Varejao and Sasha Pavlovic be averaging double-figure scoring in a conference final? No, but they are.
James makes others around him better. He's made the obscure Pavlovic an offensive threat, finding him open for jumpers or on the wing in transition.
He finds Varejao for easy layups and dunks inside. His ability to be such a threat in the pick-and-roll has enabled Ilgauskas to bring opposing bigs outside for middle distance jumpers.
LeBron is being scolded and scorned for not taking the responsibility of making sure the final shot of a close game is his own. That's not only unfair, but hypocritical of masses who berate the NBA for being a me-first league in the first place.
LeBron can score anytime he wishes. But, as he saw in Jordan's earlier years, you don't truly grow as a player unless your team grows with you. There is no one-way street.
So while it's perfectly fine to critique James for his passive play - after all, he has shot 35 percent from the floor and is averaging four turnovers per game - it's not right to let his teammates off the hook.
The fact is every night he's the best player on the floor during these finals. And he realizes more than anybody that this series won't be won by himself; not when the best defensive team in the playoffs is focused on stopping every single move he makes.
It's possible that with all the media attention being played towards his last two performances, LeBron is beginning to feel immense pressure. Always wary of his public image, he may be even more conscious that ever before.
It would be wrong to kid ourselves into think the Cavs should challenge Detroit in any aspect. The Pistons are more talented, deeper and have players who know what it takes to step up when it counts.
LeBron has stepped up when it matters before. He's proven he knows what to do and what plays to make to put his team in the best position to win.
Now the rest of the Cavs have to prove that they deserve that trust. |
