Lebron a better passer than Larry???!!!!

[Banks2Pierce]

If anything, the skill of Bird's teammates actually made it harder on him to make passes. Teams couldn't leave McHale of Parish all alone, so Bird had to be more creative in ways to get them the ball. When Lebron drives, he attracts the whole defense and is able to find wide open guys.

As well as seeing a bunch of game tape on Bird, I feel like I saw a 6 minute highlight tape of like 50 passes that Bird made that Lebron simply couldn't do.

And none of this is a knock on Lebron. I think he is one of the sickest, most unfair to play against forces the NBA has seen, but his passing is not on Larry's level. How crazy did he look in that Browns uniform in that commercial? The guy is just a once in a lifetime player, just as Larry was. It's entertaining for us basketball fans because they all bring different attributes to the table.

[GuyClinch]

^^^ Agreed. You can go to 'stats' but they wouldn't really tell the true story. The big thing is that guys like Lebron (and to a lessor extent Pierce) get EASY passes by drawing double and triple teams. This leaves guys WIDE open for easy scoring passes.

Bird OTOH wasn't that kind of physical talent. He made those easy passes sure. But he made crazy hard passes that you didn't even know where there on a regular basis. Back then teams played man to man defense alot more and didn't rotate like they do now. So guys like Mchale and Parish were never left open the way Perk might be today..

What has always struck me about Lebron is that his physical talent is not rated high enough. He is still mostly an athlete. His combination of speed, strength, quickness is really off the charts even at the NBA level (which is crazy). I have never seen a guy like PP just physically overmatched the way he was. Normal 'studs' like Vince Carter and Kobe Bryant dont' do that to him.

The flip side of this though is his game is really still based alot on his athleticism. He is smart enough to know this and is working to improve it though.

Pete

[tombattor]

Obviously, there is a general consensus on this board that anything Larry Bird ever did is untouchable. However, it's not that ridiculous to say that Lebron is a better passer than Larry Bird. Do I think so? I'm not so sure, but here is the thing.

Larry Bird was a guy who was passing the way he was, before anyone had really seen big forwards pass like that. And having seen guys like Larry play, growing up, of course Lebron's learned a few tricks and now can do all the things Larry did, but much better. That is not a knock on Larry because the same goes for every skill in every position. So in that sense, Larry was a pioneer and if Lebron was doing what Larry did then you have to say that Larry was the better passer.

However, Lebron isn't doing what Larry did. He's taking it to the next level. As good of a passer Larry was, he never really played a role of a PG, which is what Lebron essentially has been doing. He runs pick and rolls, he runs the offense, etc. So his passes are coming the way a PG's passes are coming, with everyone expecting it. And he's still fooling defenders with his passing. That from a big PF sized player is an amazing thing. Maybe that's saying more about his ball-handling skills, but you get the point.

[Bruiser]

Obviously, there is a general consensus on this board that anything Larry Bird ever did is untouchable. However, it's not that ridiculous to say that Lebron is a better passer than Larry Bird. Do I think so? I'm not so sure, but here is the thing.

Larry Bird was a guy who was passing the way he was, before anyone had really seen big forwards pass like that. And having seen guys like Larry play, growing up, of course Lebron's learned a few tricks and now can do all the things Larry did, but much better. That is not a knock on Larry because the same goes for every skill in every position. So in that sense, Larry was a pioneer and if Lebron was doing what Larry did then you have to say that Larry was the better passer.

However, Lebron isn't doing what Larry did. He's taking it to the next level. As good of a passer Larry was, he never really played a role of a PG, which is what Lebron essentially has been doing. He runs pick and rolls, he runs the offense, etc. So his passes are coming the way a PG's passes are coming, with everyone expecting it. And he's still fooling defenders with his passing. That from a big PF sized player is an amazing thing. Maybe that's saying more about his ball-handling skills, but you get the point.

Ok.
Let's`play a game.
Name Lebron's five best passes ever. I can recall any.

But these are my Larry´s top five.

5.- Against the Hawks at the Garden. Long pass that almost goes out of bounds but Larry touches it backwards to Parish.
4.- Against the Bucks at the Garden. Larry faces Sikma and throws a pass between his legs for an easy bucket.
3.- Against the Pacers at the Garden. He goes behind the back into the lane and the Pacers go behind him. Then he throws the ball backwards to Parish for the easy two.
2.- Against the Bucks at the Garden. Fighting against Sikma and while the ball is fumbling he is able to touch it backwards to Parish.
1.- Against the Pistons at the Garden. Poor Isiah thinks he is going to win the game but........

[tombattor]

Ok.
Let's`play a game.
Name Lebron's five best passes ever. I can recall any.

But these are my Larry´s top five.

5.- Against the Hawks at the Garden. Long pass that almost goes out of bounds but Larry touches it backwards to Parish.
4.- Against the Bucks at the Garden. Larry faces Sikma and throws a pass between his legs for an easy bucket.
3.- Against the Pacers at the Garden. He goes behind the back into the lane and the Pacers go behind him. Then he throws the ball backwards to Parish for the easy two.
2.- Against the Bucks at the Garden. Fighting against Sikma and while the ball is fumbling he is able to touch it backwards to Parish.
1.- Against the Pistons at the Garden. Poor Isiah thinks he is going to win the game but........

Ok. So Larry Bird had some amazing passes. What's your point? I hope you're not trying to judge a man's passing ability on a few highlights.

By your awesome logic, Nick Anderson was a better scorer than D-Wade, right? I mean, Nick Anderson did score 50 in a game once, while D-Wade could never do it.

[Bruiser]

Ok. So Larry Bird had some amazing passes. What's your point? I hope you're not trying to judge a man's passing ability on a few highlights.

By your awesome logic, Nick Anderson was a better scorer than D-Wade, right? I mean, Nick Anderson did score 50 in a game once, while D-Wade could never do it.

My point is that I can't recall any awesome passes from LeBron while I can remember a few dunks.
I can remember great dishes from Kidd, Nash, Stockton, Manu, Magic, Pistol, Mark Jackson but none from James.

[wigglestrue]

I agree with Rosen most of the times

There's your problem.