LeBron has probably had his worst NBA Finals ever. He's been really weird for me. Not one game has he started early. In every game so far he has gone scoreless for the first few minutes, not even attempting shots.
The old get your teammates going thing I guess. But really? Be more aggressive. If he comes out and scores 10 points really quickly on aggressive drives. GSW are gonna be thinking, shit LeBron is gonna drop 50 on us, the defense will react, it will open up more shots for your shooters, then you can start to get your teammates involved.
He has also settled for jumpers too much. He's not a great jumpshooter, yet he is almost impossible to stop when he drives. Im not sure he has elite bball IQ. Or at least when it comes to his own game.
Anyways, ill just get the LBJ hater response. But just discussing his Finals performance thus far. Not nearly as aggressive as I'd want him to be if I were the coach. He's not even leading his team in scoring.
The old get your teammates going thing I guess. But really? Be more aggressive. If he comes out and scores 10 points really quickly on aggressive drives. GSW are gonna be thinking, shit LeBron is gonna drop 50 on us, the defense will react, it will open up more shots for your shooters, then you can start to get your teammates involved.
He has also settled for jumpers too much. He's not a great jumpshooter, yet he is almost impossible to stop when he drives. Im not sure he has elite bball IQ. Or at least when it comes to his own game.
Anyways, ill just get the LBJ hater response. But just discussing his Finals performance thus far. Not nearly as aggressive as I'd want him to be if I were the coach. He's not even leading his team in scoring.
Saying it is his worst finals though is stretching it. He was awful in 2011 and was simply overawed and outplayed back in 2007.
As bizarre as it sounds, he has probably been the best player in the Finals thus far. Consider his following rank in the NBA Finals:
Points: 2nd (1 point behind Kyrie)
Rebounds: 1st
Assists: 1st
Steals: 2nd (1 steal behind Kyrie)
Blocks: 1st
Unfortunately, this has been undermined somewhat by the fact he hasn't protected the ball well. He's turned the ball over on 20 per cent of his possessions (well above his season average but admittedly still slightly below Curry's turnover rate in the Finals).
The only way Cleveland was going to beat the Warriors was if the role players shot as well as they did earlier in the playoffs. This required LeBron to play more of a facilitator role to get the ball in the hands of those best placed to hit a three. Obviously that hasn't worked.
But I do wonder whether we simply lose all sense of perspective when LeBron is concerned. Are we really blaming him for losing to a team that has the best record in NBA history? In a series in which almost everyone expected him to lose? LeBron hasn't played his best basketball but he's still been the most productive player throughout the Finals. But the opposition is simply too talented and bats too deep; even with relatively poor performances from Curry and Thompson, it hasn't really mattered. It's a timely reminder that basketball is a team player and everyone needs to play their role.

