“One Of The Most Coachable Guys”: Los Angeles Lakers Coach Lauds LeBron James For His Humility

There is a reason why LeBron James is still going strong in the NBA at 35 years of age. It is because he is incredibly fit. Who knows? Bron might be fitter than most of the young athletes who are in the NBA. To keep playing at this level, an athlete requires an immense amount of dedication and work ethic towards his game. Moreover, a dedicated coach to help tune your skills is as important as you working out and staying fit. 

Phil Handy is a person who has known LeBron for a long time. He’s been working with the four-time MVP since his second stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Handy is now an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Lakers following his winning season with the Toronto Raptors in 2019. 

The 48-year-old coach joined Ros Gold-Onwude of ESPN to discuss his experience of coaching LeBron and how he helps him fine-tune his game to stay more efficient. Here is what Phil Handy had to say about his early days of training LeBron James:

“The way I teach things are a little different. So it took a little bit of time for us to get comfortable together,” Handy said. “But, you look at Bron now and he’s the same.”

“He wants to work on the same things. He wants to get better at every facet of the game. From his ball-handling to his finishing, to his post-ups, top his pick and rolls, to his mid-range, to his 3’s, he wants to touch on every piece of the game because he plays that way,” Handy informed. 

The humility of LeBron James still continues to shock James Handy

With a few achievements in your field, you get a sense of confidence in yourself. For a player like LeBron James, it is not unnatural for him to carry a particular attitude. He has been in the league for 17-years and he knows every nuance of it. Thus, one could say that LeBron doesn’t require a trainer to monitor his efficiency and help him improve. The king knows all the details and he can work on it himself. 

“What has really had taken me back is his humility,” Handy continued. “As a player of that stature, he’s one of the most coachable guys I’ve ever been around. And when I’m talking about coachable, he still looks you in the eye as a coach, he still responds to coaching and he wants it.”

So what type of work is LeBron putting in to stay efficient at this age?

If you are LeBron James, you know for a fact that people expect a certain standard from you. Well, you set that standard for yourself. Thus, as your age increases it cannot be given as an excuse until you decide it is time to stop. LeBron knows that he can’t be the same player he was around 15 years ago. But he still has it in him.

To maximize his talents on the court, the king is working on staying efficient. “He wants to be efficient in his work so he can play efficiently as well,” Handy said. “We spend a lot of time on his ball handling. We spend a lot of time on his footwork.” 

The Lakers assistant coach then briefed about the drills that he and LeBron have been working on currently. “We do a lot of rhythm dribbles,” Handy informed. “We do a lot of combinations to put him in different scenarios where he’s comfortable handling the ball on the perimeter.”

“And so, I think I’ve always just tried to do things with him that apply to his game, but also help him in the areas that he wants to continue to improve on.”

LeBron is seriously eyeing his fifth championship ring and winning it would mean that he would be stretching his legacy even further. Can the king push his team till the finals and help the Los Angeles Lakers secure their first title since 2010?