NBA Finals: LeBron James Breaks Down Why Celtics Failed vs Warriors Despite Having “Better Talent”

Basketball legend LeBron James, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer and a four-time Most Valuable Player, has teamed up with retired sharpshooter J.J. Redick for a new podcast. This unexpected pairing launched their show, “Mind the Game,” on YouTube on Tuesday. Produced by James’ Uninterrupted and Redick’s ThreeFourTwo Productions, the podcast promises insightful discussions from these two brilliant basketball minds. Unfiltered conversations are the name of the game, and LeBron even dropped a “golden” nugget of wisdom while dissecting the Warriors’ victory over the Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals.

Redick asked LeBron if the game requires more basketball intelligence now or less than when he first started. James responded by saying, “The top four teams normally are gonna be the team with the best players, best coaches, and what’s going to separate them is now the basketball IQ kicks in. Because there’s moments in the games that a coach cannot prepare you for, film can’t prepare you for, the history of the game can’t prepare you for, where you have to have a basketball IQ to make adjustments right away.” The ‘mind frame and the capacity’ that arrives in the state here is what James believes proves absolute essential, thus reasoning his statement on Boston’s defeat further.

King James had a seemingly simple yet deep answer for why the Celtics failed vs the Warriors despite having “better talent”. James stated, “I believe that when Golden State beat Boston it came down to IQ in the finals cos Boston to me had the better talent. People say experience, IQ!” The comprehension of the conversation drove the two to discuss one of the better players befitting of the context: Jayson Tatum.

Tatum Time: James and Redick Breakdown Tatum’s Evolution

LeBron James and J.J. Redick dove into the evolution of Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum. Redick specifically highlighted Tatum’s improved ability to read the game. He noted that Tatum seems to process situations faster, leading to quicker decisions and a smoother flow to his game. Redick emphasized the importance of making the defense work for its stops. Just because a defender is in his face with help behind him doesn’t mean Tatum should automatically take a contested three or a forgettable swing pass.

They even broke down a play against the Dallas Mavericks where Tatum, facing down Maxi Kleber with potential reinforcements on the way, showed why he’s an All-Star with an IQ to match his skills. He attacked, made a brilliant read, and created a way better scoring opportunity than any pre-determined play could have.

The Boston Celtics are currently the No. 1 seed, leading the entire league with an insane record of 54 wins over 12 losses. Tatum and his teammates certainly seem to have used their basketball IQ to get to this point. Will their actual championship run disclose that, or will they fall short? Stay tuned to find out more!

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