LeBron James is more than just a generational talent. He has firmly established himself amongst the pantheon of basketball greats. Along with that, he is on his way to make his resume stronger. His LA Lakers are in the second round of the NBA Playoffs after a strong 4-1 series win against the Portland Trail Blazers. They face the Houston Rockets next.
LA Lakers Head Coach Frank Vogel took the time to speak with the media about his star forward/point guard LeBron James. Vogel was dismayed by the lack of appreciation that LeBron James gets. He believes that everyone takes his brilliance for granted, but no one inside the Lakers organization does the same.
“I think the media and maybe the fans are taking for granted. But we don’t take it for granted inhouse here. Our coaching staff, front office and his team-mates, we all really understand appreciate how special his performances are and what he brings to the table. We definitely don’t take that for granted.”
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In year 17, at age 35, having played more postseason minutes than any player ever, @KingJames averaged 27.4 ppg on 59.9% FG’s, 41.4% from 3 and 80.5% from the FT line, plus 10.2 assists, 10.2 boards and 1.2 steals in Round 1. He needed to play only 32.8 mpg (very low for him). pic.twitter.com/ymb1TVe7Ko
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) August 30, 2020
LeBron James: An underappreciated talent?
It is hard to say that LeBron is not appreciated. However, it is fair to say that his time in the NBA is being taken for granted. People just casually look over the fact that LeBron James has been in the MVP race every season since players like Luka Doncic were in elementary school. His longevity is only rivaled by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Despite what we see from ‘Bron, he is subjected to a lot of media scrutiny.
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While obviously James will never be the player he was 7 years ago again, but his performances in year 17 are sensational. There is no player that can claim a career this deep at this level of consistent success. The Michael Jordan comparisons are so personal to some that they drag LeBron down to prop MJ up on a pedestal. While LeBron fans do the same, the original point gets lost. These are all great players and should be appreciated as such.
LeBron James and his greatness for so many years have entertained almost two generations of people. Vogel is right that we take him for granted. Maybe we should drop the knives of expectations and just marvel at what a 35-year-old basketball savant can do in the face of younger and faster players.
