LeBron James has taken a lot of (much deserved) criticism over the last couple of years for his tendency to play lackadaisically and for his statement that his #1 goal is to become a “global icon” (instead of a NBA champion), but he showed last night that he has the heart and talent to single-handedly will his team to a playoff win.
He dropped a career playoff-high 48 points (including his team’s last 25) on one of the best defensive teams in the league in what might go down as the most amazing individual performance in league history. (You can see the final 25 points here.)
Inevitably, James has drawn comparisons to Michael Jordan, but he’s really more like another MJ – Magic Johnson – a point forward who handles the ball and serves as playmaker for his team. While Jordan was the consummate finisher (allowing Scottie Pippen to fill the playmaker role), Magic was the consummate catalyst, distributing the ball to his teammates at exactly the right moment to give them the best opportunity for success.
Normally, this is how LeBron tries to play, but he’s not hitting the court with James Worthy, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or Byron Scott. He’s playing with the likes of Larry Hughes, Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Drew Gooden. Last night, the entire Cavs roster was pretty ineffective, especially down the stretch, so LeBron took it upon himself to win the game. He showed that killer instinct that Jordan, Magic and Larry Bird showed every time they stepped on the floor.
But that’s what’s so frustrating about LeBron. He should be living in that zone, night in and night out. The will to win is not a finite resource. You’re not going to use it up if you approach the first game of the season the same way you approach Game 5 of the Conference Finals. The mindset should be the same before every game: there’s a team that wants to beat you tonight, and you’re not going to let it happen.
If the Cavs somehow end up losing this series after LeBron’s performance in Game 5, it will be a crushing blow to the franchise. They don’t have any salary cap flexibility until the summer of ’09, so this is pretty much the team that LeBron has to play with for the next couple of years. The only way they’ll get better is via the draft (Daniel Gibson is turning out to be a very nice pick) and possibly finding a taker for Ilgauskas or Hughes, though given their bloated salaries, it’s unlikely.
I don’t think this team has a chance in hell against the Spurs – they’re severely outmatched at every position but small forward and I don’t see how Mike Brown will ever lead any team to a title – but if LeBron can repeat his Game 5 performance three or four more times in the Finals, you never know.
Here’s the big question: is LeBron living in this zone or is he just passing through?
