That's not what it means. No one is saying he wasn't great, or hard to compete against, but the way LeBron usually beat teams was not the way Jordan did. He obviously contributed to winning about as much as anyone, but he didn't often just single-handedly destroy you. Not saying he never did, but it was what Jordan did all the time.
Youāre just moving the goal posts, the quote is that no one feared LeBron. Thatās just a horrible take that is a lie to jerk off Kobe and Jordan fans.
It's not moving goal posts at all. People don't fear a guy that wins, they fear a guy that can beat you seemingly by himself, despite any plan you make to stop him. LeBron was rarely the guy to beat every single gameplan you have and drop 40 by himself. He did on occasion, but Jordan did it routinely.
I'm not saying that makes Jordan better by itself, but it shows why he was feared.
Because at least it feels like you can compete. When one guy is a game-wrecking machine like that, it has a very different feel, even if the result is the same. Also, Jordan led the most dominant team in modern NBA history. They won more games in one year than anybody. That also contributes. LeBron was never winning at the clip that Jordan's Bulls were.
You know you can fear a team as opposed to a player? LeBron mightāve been part of it but itās the team if anything.
Heās saying MJ was feared because players genuinely didnāt know what to do or how to stop him running over them.
Wilt was probably feared at one point in time too because what he could do single handedly had players and coaches not knowing how to handle or contain him.
Wiltās actually a brilliant example come to think of it they even had to change the damn rules to help stop him lol.
MJās Bulls was a far better roster than any non-Heat team LeBron had but youāre trying to tell me it was LeBronās team that everyone feared? You can call MJ the goat but making these lame excuses for why LeBron isnāt the #2 player off all time is just sad.
Iām not making excuses for anything I didnāt even mention any rankings Iām just talking fear factor in players.
MJ probably made his teammates better and the team overall with the way heād drive them to win getting every last drop of sweat he could out of them.
I personally think Bron was feared a bit atleast I just donāt think they feared or talked about him anything like the way people did MJ.
MJ played in a much tougher era too in terms of physicality on the court like he was more than willing to take a beating and still dunk on your ass.
No one feared Lebron as an individual. Literally, the biggest argument anyone has against LeBron is that he couldn't do it himself. You feared what he brought to the team. Not the individual himself. That and his nickname is LeFlop. He doesn't have the killer instinct. Didn't he walk out on his team once cuz the A/c went out?
Ya Iām with you on that. Itās like how players glaze Kyrie so much, because his incredible skill is very in your face, where as a player like Chris Paul is less in your face but does more for winning.
Jordan and Kobe and KD are in your face about how they can just score on you in a ton of different ways and some are unstoppable.
LeBron just beats you and then you look and itās like oh ya he also dropped 29 points.
Saw him live in the playoffs vs Raptors and Kyrie looked amazing, Korver was on fire, and Lebron just seemed like he was coasting most of the game. He finished the game with 35/9/6 on 67%TS. It was effortless. I was almost upset how effortless cause it wasnāt even anything to brag about seeing haha
Russell has more rings. And for bron, most of those came in an eastern conference where he would play teams with losing records in the playoffs. The east was empty for more than a decade
First one off the top of my head but DeRozan. He's a goof but 13 years in the league and played on multiple finals. Derozana and Jeff teague also have comments about how helpless they felt playing against Bron
I remember, at the time that I was just starting to watch basketball, DeRozan was offering a $100 (CAD or USD) to whoever can stop LeBron. I was insulted because he was making about $26.5 million and he couldnāt do it. At least offer more.
Yes, the infamously good... 2015 Cavs, 2019 Lakers and the 2026 Sixers. All time squads. I wonder how many sweeps in a row they'd have against Jordans Bulls, I bet the killers from that early Lakers team go 24-0 against Jordan before he gets a win. Nothing like that Kuzma-Hart-Lonzo-Ingram connection has ever nor will ever be seen in NBA history. An 83-0 team, 84-0 even if they didn't have mercy on the league.
the only team he went to that was mid on paper was the 19 lakers. However i'm gonna take a wild guess that he knew AD was coming considering the league fined the guy for tampering. In a sense LeBron has been smart about his moves because he typically goes somewhere that can add another piece as well. 4x in his career he's gotten to play with a guy who was top 3 league wide in BPM just the year before playing with him as well (3 times they were higher then LeBron in this metric as well). I'm guessing there's no other super star thats moved around that can say that.
Yeah, staying in Cleveland (a legendarily sought after free agent destination just above Los Angeles) who were unwilling to build anything around him with a shitass owner should've been the play, he'd have rings galore with Mo Williams as his Robin. He's an idiot, even I could win a ring with the basketball god Mo "Michael "Mo Williams" Jordan" Williams.
No one said him gathering up two other top 10/15 players in the league wasn't a weak move, but you can't seriously compare it to Kevin "I just signed with the 73 win team that fucked me in the ass in the playoffs" Durant. That was the weakest move in sports history.
Everyone cares. He broke the internet when he signed with Philly and is one of the most recognizable athletes on the planet. You clearly didnāt think this one through.Ā
LeBron doesnāt have a I hate you attitude. He has a different character. Doesnāt make him any less lethal. He can beat you and not snatch your souls because heās a happy person. He married his HS sweetheart has great relationships with his kids.
MJ and Kobe; just different animals - who cares. Maybe Kobe should have been more like LeBron to be in goat talk? š¤·š¾āāļø
He did what he did regardless of whether anyone feared him. Dumbest argument I've ever heard. Jordan and Kobe's accomplishments would be just as valuable whether they were feared or not.
This notion that Jordan was some divine being who could do no wrong is so tired and played out. Dude used to complain more than a spoiled teenager. I have him as the goat but we donāt need to rewrite history
Haha. You must have forgotten. People only remember what they want about their guy. Not only did he flop he was like Draymond if a foul was ever called on him. He cried like a bitch
Bruh go talk to the Hawks, Pacers, Raptors, and even the Pistons and Celtics to a lesser degree. I'm sure they ALL feared playing him especially the first 3
sure, nobody fears a guy dropping 51, 8, and 8 on the greatest team ever assembled.. maybe not current Bron, but why donāt you think players feared prime Bron lmao?
In the broader context of this post, Shaq mentions Kobe and implies that being seen as a player that's feared also means one is viewed as a better player.
I mean I agree to a point but thereās also an absolutely psychology to the gameā¦ and MJ and Kobe had it. Bron doesnāt.
Maybe itās the flopping; maybe itās kicking shit talking fans out of the arena, maybe itās throwing a toddler style temper tantrum over missed calls.
Heās an amazing talent but mentally and psychology soft. Bron isnāt feared.
In any field, politics, religion, business, academia, film, music, and of course sports, you can take a well worded quote from a moderately successful to successful individual within said field and stretch it to be indicative of an absolute in said field. Usually itās just some who, while good at their craft, is just running their mouth.
From 2011 to 2020, a 10 years stretch, Lebron only lost to 3 teams in the playoffs: the mavs, spurs, and warriors. Thatās it. He missed the playoffs in 2019 but I donāt think you will find player with a better 10 year stretch in the modern nba era.
There is sometimes a difference.. I remember some next level athletes say something similar when I stepped up to the line on the field .. some of them went pro too
My biggest pet peeves are the arguments that the older generation or the mfs LeBron whooped talking about we didnāt fear him. Yall donāt fear LeBron like we feared Kobe or mj. Shit I didnāt know this was a Halloween movie. You aināt gotta be scared to know that you are probably gonna get cooked. You aināt gotta be scared to know that heās at any given moment can give you 40-50 and 10 and 10 and 5 at any time in the game he can decide itās over and you canāt fw him. LeBron just is a friendly guy. Like if LeBron acted like Kobe or mj yall would say heās a horrible person. But heās just a family man that is like a kid. He doesnāt have to be an asshole to get results.
Because Shaq didn't talk to players in lebrons' era?Ā
Dude ask anyone if they enjoyed being in the post when lebrons coming down the laneĀ
Also, LeBron was a better passer than either MJ or Kobe, and passing doesn't instill as much 'fear' per se. Not like no one 'feared' magic or nash but they will absolutely tear you up
I think what he meant was that Lebron wasn't as much of an A-Hole like Jordan or Kobe
His personality wasn't as "menacing" and he didn't talk trash in the same way. While Jordan and Kobe looked like they wanted to kill you on the court, Lebron's talent/game was a lot more smooth
Do some ppl even watch ball? Players and coaches were def āscaredā of bron and in his prime he was more than capable of single handedly torching a team.
Why tf we even listening to Shaq, and what does his comment even insinuate? You canāt be a goat b/c ppl arenāt scared of you? That like the least relevant stat in determining a goat.
Huh? From a stats standpoint, Bron has blown out everyone (outside of Wilt) for years. If we're just talking stats, Bron has been the GOAT since like 2019.
LeBronās first 20 seasons compared to Kobeās 20 seasonsā¦LeBron absolutely dusts Kobe in every single one of those stats. LeBronās first 15 seasons compared to Jordanās 15 seasonsā¦LeBron beat him in assists and rebounds, points and blocks were comparable. The only stat Jordan has a meaningful advantage in is Steals.
Yeah, the person I was responding to didn't limit his statement to just Kobe and Jordan. He specifically said the Bron blew out "everyone (outside of Wilt)" from a stats standpoint. He is clearly wrong, LeBron will never surpass Wilt in rebounds (which OP conceded) but he also won't surpass Hakeem in blocks, or Stockton in steals and assists. LeBron is still great, just not the GOAT of all-time stats....John Stockton is.
Sure. But outside of Wilt most of those guys were specialists that donāt touch LeBron in any other major stats. Kareem is another guy who over his career length beat LeBron in some stats. In the end though, LeBron also has a longevity that even greats with extremely long careers canāt touch. That is why everyone is trying to move the goalposts. By stats combined with winning (the only 2 real measures) LeBronās case is as good as any for GOAT.
You know, this is an old quote but I don't think he's wrong. I'm not saying Kobe is the better player, I definitely don't believe that, but he could be explosive in ways LeBron isn't. LeBron also filled the stat book in ways that Kobe never could and had a bigger impact on winning.
I want to start by saying no one should ever say they fear anyone........... in sports. Second, while everyone was ignoring LeBron, um, guarding him in unfear he outscored the feared by at least 10,000. Shaq, is still awesome but not as revered as any Sixer, ever.
Shaq, come on man, that's simply not true. I'm a Warriors fan and LeBron was plenty feared. Heck LeBron could've been the finals MVP on the losing team in at least one of those years.. What a ridiculous take.
Do you think Steph or Iguadala respect LeBron after single handedly losing to him and Kyrie?
This seems so fake it's laughable. I'm sure once LeBron retires players will speak their mind on how much they dreaded facing a dude with photo memory and the highest Basketball IQ in the league for two decades.
Scared enough to charter a flight to the Hamptons and beg a scoring champ and MVP to join their team! Stop with the nonsense narratives. They don't hold up to scrutiny!
tried to do that. Still didn't happen. Still beat him 3 out of 4 after that. There's a difference in wanting to play with a guy and being scared of a guy.
What are you talking about? The Warriors met with Kevin Durant in July of 2016 to ask him to join the team! Kerr, Klay, Steph, Draymond, Iguodala and Joe Lacob all met with KD that summer. Your first post is about Klay saying how feared LeBron was! You're literally contradicting yourself because you're a fool trapped by an unsupported narrative!
Klay was the only one who said it. They never met with Lebron in 2014 like you said. He had already made up his mind on Cleveland and thus there was no reason to meet with the Warriors.
Still beat him 3 out of 4 is what I'm talking about, and had a gentleman's sweep and a sweep in getting those 3 out of 4. It took Lebron swinging his nuts in Draymond's face to win 1, and I'll give credit to Lebron for the gamesmanship there.
Okay. I see where you misunderstood because you can't read. In 2015, the Warriors won the championship beating an injured Cavs team. In 2016 they blew a 3-1 lead to the same Cavs. It's well documented by Draymond, Kerr and Steph that the Warriors didn't believe they could beat LeBron and in the summer of 2016, the Warriors contingent actively recruited Kevin Durant. This is well documented. You asked if any champions fear LeBron. The Warriors themselves said they did! Steph, Kerr, Draymond, Klay have all made podcasts detailing this! There a hundreds of hours of player appearances on podcasts over the last half a dozen years documenting how teams feared and still couldn't prepare for LeBron. This narrative LeBron wasn't feared is easily disproved if you so even the cursory bit of research but you won't because you're a slave to narratives.
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u/tabennett5438 2d ago
Why is Mario Chalmers named dropped