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Him accommodating Luka and flourishing should finally put that argument to bed.

On-ball, off-ball, LeBron have it all. His first year with Wade was always an exception, cause he didn't want to step on Wade's toe.

The only reason people thought LeBron couldn't play off ball is because until now he has never had the chance to play with a passer even close to Luka's caliber

The only player LeBron had problem gelling 100% with is Wade because Wade was a guard who just didn't work on his 3 point shooting clogging the lane.

Wade was the one who was declining due to his knees but it was LeBron working on his 3 point shooting despite being healthy and in his prime in Miami. It should have been the opposite. Wade was a good passer and if he shot just as many 3s as LeBron then that Miami offense would have been special.

Love and Bosh were just 3rd options and unless you can shoot the 3 really well or are really dominant in the post, you won't get a lot of shots as the 3rd option.

C3H6N6O6 wrote:The only player LeBron had problem gelling 100% with is Wade because Wade was a guard who just didn't work on his 3 point shooting clogging the lane.

Yeah, people forget that to have synergy between two stars, both players have to be competent on and off-ball. That's why LeBron has had great synergy with Kyrie, AD and will have with Luka if his spot up numbers get decent and he develops some cutting game.

LeBron locked in defensively (as he certainly is since mid-December/January) with decent spot-up splits is the most versatile player ever both ends of the floor onsidered.

Curry is the GOAT off ball player though. Totally unfair to compare anyone to him, much less Lebron. Lebron made it work with Wade and Kyrie. So anyone still harping that Bron can't play off the ball should be permanently ignored.

LeBron is the greatest and smartest ball player ever. To think he can’t play with anyone is a joke.

Optms wrote:Curry is the GOAT off ball player though. Totally unfair to compare anyone to him, much less Lebron. Lebron made it work with Wade and Kyrie. So anyone still harping that Bron can't play off the ball should be permanently ignored.

Only if we pretend that portability doesn't include defense..

MrGoat wrote:The only reason people thought LeBron couldn't play off ball is because until now he has never had the chance to play with a passer even close to Luka's caliber

The real question is:
Does Luka make LeBron better?
Or that honor is reserved for the least privileged ones?

C3H6N6O6 wrote:The only player LeBron had problem gelling 100% with is Wade because Wade was a guard who just didn't work on his 3 point shooting clogging the lane.

Wade was the one who was declining due to his knees but it was LeBron working on his 3 point shooting despite being healthy and in his prime in Miami. It should have been the opposite. Wade was a good passer and if he shot just as many 3s as LeBron then that Miami offense would have been special.

Love and Bosh were just 3rd options and unless you can shoot the 3 really well or are really dominant in the post, you won't get a lot of shots as the 3rd option.

Hogwash they went to 4 straight finals, won 2 titles together and the only reason it wasn't 3 was solely due to Lebron shrinking in '11 and Dirk.

WestGOAT wrote:Him accommodating Luka and flourishing should finally put that argument to bed.

On-ball, off-ball, LeBron have it all. His first year with Wade was always an exception, cause he didn't want to step on Wade's toe.

You're joking right?

Sign5 wrote:

C3H6N6O6 wrote:The only player LeBron had problem gelling 100% with is Wade because Wade was a guard who just didn't work on his 3 point shooting clogging the lane.

Wade was the one who was declining due to his knees but it was LeBron working on his 3 point shooting despite being healthy and in his prime in Miami. It should have been the opposite. Wade was a good passer and if he shot just as many 3s as LeBron then that Miami offense would have been special.

Love and Bosh were just 3rd options and unless you can shoot the 3 really well or are really dominant in the post, you won't get a lot of shots as the 3rd option.

Hogwash they went to 4 straight finals, won 2 titles together and the only reason it wasn't 3 was solely due to Lebron shrinking in '11 and Dirk.

And Ray Allen

Sign5 wrote:

C3H6N6O6 wrote:The only player LeBron had problem gelling 100% with is Wade because Wade was a guard who just didn't work on his 3 point shooting clogging the lane.

Wade was the one who was declining due to his knees but it was LeBron working on his 3 point shooting despite being healthy and in his prime in Miami. It should have been the opposite. Wade was a good passer and if he shot just as many 3s as LeBron then that Miami offense would have been special.

Love and Bosh were just 3rd options and unless you can shoot the 3 really well or are really dominant in the post, you won't get a lot of shots as the 3rd option.

Hogwash they went to 4 straight finals, won 2 titles together and the only reason it wasn't 3 was solely due to Lebron shrinking in '11 and Dirk.

No one is forgetting about LeBron in 2011 finals but I am also not forgetting Wade's play in 2013 and 2014 finals.

LeBron is the most versatile & portable player of all time. His versatility is what makes him the GOAT. He can fill literally every role on the court at an elite to all-time great level. The "LeBron can't play off ball" takes have been proven wrong for 10+ years now.

I'd probably put KD as the 2nd most portable star. He's been in a ton of different situations throughout his career and always has elite production.

Lmao... LeBron has always been more versatile than Curry. It was never even remotely close. And if you factor in defensive versatility - which Curry Cobblers never do + then cod jam cod jam, it's a landslide of epic proportions...

Everyone lacks portability compared to Curry except maybe Kevin Durant. It's one of those beliefs that is both true and still does not really diminish Lebron much if you think about it for a moment.

It's also noteworthy that Lebron is almost 40. The fit concerns with him and other lead ball handlers were a bit overblown but it's also a very different thing to hand the reins over more when you're 40 compared to when you're 25. He's in the right place in his career, and has the right partner in Luka, to give up some control and pick his spots better.

The "he lacks portability" arguement against Lebron has always been idiotic and was mostly used by people who thought portability means only catch and shoot ability and also ignore that LeBron has been quite good catch and shoot player for a while. LeBron has dominated playing for several different teams, with vastly different rosters around him over the years, and his role, both offensively and defensively, has also varied a lot during these two decades. He is extremely versatile on both ends off the court.

C3H6N6O6 wrote:

Sign5 wrote:

C3H6N6O6 wrote:The only player LeBron had problem gelling 100% with is Wade because Wade was a guard who just didn't work on his 3 point shooting clogging the lane.

Wade was the one who was declining due to his knees but it was LeBron working on his 3 point shooting despite being healthy and in his prime in Miami. It should have been the opposite. Wade was a good passer and if he shot just as many 3s as LeBron then that Miami offense would have been special.

Love and Bosh were just 3rd options and unless you can shoot the 3 really well or are really dominant in the post, you won't get a lot of shots as the 3rd option.

Hogwash they went to 4 straight finals, won 2 titles together and the only reason it wasn't 3 was solely due to Lebron shrinking in '11 and Dirk.

No one is forgetting about LeBron in 2011 finals but I am also not forgetting Wade's play in 2013 and 2014 finals.

They won in '13 and Wade's play was big reason they had the 2nd longest winning streak in nba history, averaging 25 7 and 6 on 53% shooting during that stretch.

His knees had completely deteriorated shortly after they streak and was obviously well past his prime then on. Once again Lebron has himself to blame for not going 3/4. Prime Wade plus prime Lebron still don't guarantee a win vs '14 Spurs, they were just historically red hot from 3.

User_friendly wrote:

MrGoat wrote:The only reason people thought LeBron couldn't play off ball is because until now he has never had the chance to play with a passer even close to Luka's caliber

The real question is:
Does Luka make LeBron better?
Or that honor is reserved for the least privileged ones?

Playing off-ball forces you to play a more complete game, filling the seams, gluing the team together. It let's Lebron play differently and he's still a star.

The better question is do Lebron & Luka have synergy on the court? The answer is still tbd, but early reports are good if not great. Wait for the playoffs, where NBA defenses get a chance to scheme for the duo.

dhsilv2 wrote:

WestGOAT wrote:Him accommodating Luka and flourishing should finally put that argument to bed.

On-ball, off-ball, LeBron have it all. His first year with Wade was always an exception, cause he didn't want to step on Wade's toe.

You're joking right?

I'm guessing you're objecting to the historical revisionism of this?
" His first year with Wade was always an exception, cause he didn't want to step on Wade's toe"

As a Mavs fan, it's not like you had an objective lens to what was going on there.

C3H6N6O6 wrote:The only player LeBron had problem gelling 100% with is Wade because Wade was a guard who just didn't work on his 3 point shooting clogging the lane.

Wade was the one who was declining due to his knees but it was LeBron working on his 3 point shooting despite being healthy and in his prime in Miami. It should have been the opposite. Wade was a good passer and if he shot just as many 3s as LeBron then that Miami offense would have been special.

Love and Bosh were just 3rd options and unless you can shoot the 3 really well or are really dominant in the post, you won't get a lot of shots as the 3rd option.

Clogging up lanes wasn't a thing back then lol that was designed NBA offense. This whole shooting 3s thing wasn't a problem back then. Heat wasn't spacing the in the 2010 season either.