Ok, I’ll get this part out of the way at the beginning, so I’m not accused of being a contrarian, or a LeBron hater, or anything else that people are said to be if they question whether LeBron can actually walk on water… he’s the MVP this year. The dude is scary good. I mean, he averaged 30 points, 7 assists and 9 board per game. That’s awesome. No doubt.
But, still… the hyperbole about this guy just continues to get crazier. Months ago, I pointed out that (i) LeBron’s numbers are not all that much better than other superstars who do not get nearly the same amount of credit, and also that (ii) Bill Simmons, among other people, essentially winds up drooling over himself when he writes about LeBron. Ok. Whatever. Been there done that.
This morning, though, I was listening to Mike and Mike on the radio for a few minutes, and their guest was Dickie V. Now, I know that Dickie V is not really the guy we look to when we hope people will start to turn the excitement down a notch. But this was out of control. Dickie V said – and both Mikes agreed with him – that LeBron is on his way to being the best of all time. Yup. Numero uno. He then launched into the typical rant about how amazing it is that LeBron has done so much at such a young age with such a lousy supporting cast.
Is anyone else tired of hearing that, or is it just me? LeBron is in his seventh season. Isn’t it about time we start evaluating what he has done instead of what he has the potential to do? I mean, how many years in the league does he deserve before people stop talking about how much potential he has to be great when he grows up?
Plus, LeBron’s teammates are good. Very good. I’ve already blogged about this elsewhere (here and here, for example), and won’t repeat myself. The bottom line is that there are 4 different guys on LeBron’s team who were once All-Stars. And it’s not like they’re all old and crippled. They still run, jump, pass, and shoot. They’d run circles around D-Wade’s “supporting cast.” Yet, when Dickie V explained why MJ was able to win so many more titles than LeBron has been able to win, he wound up knocking LeBron’s supporting cast, and talking about what a wonderful rebounder Bill Cartwright was on the Bulls. Seriously. Bill Cartwright.
There’s more. Dickie V said – and the two Mikes agreed – that LeBron can score “whenever he wants.” Yup. Whenever he wants. So, presumably, the only reason the Cavs lost any games this season was that LeBron didn’t “want” to win them.
I’m not sure why people need to give him soooo much credit. He’s awesome. He’s the MVP. Until he proves that he can lead a team to a championship, he deserves to be grouped with the other superstars who never won a championship — not with the ones who won six.