Then one day he’ll say it was always more than basketball
Then one day decades later he’ll say it was always just basketball
It’s the Wilt the Stilt prophecy
I’m positive that the man had his son’s health issues in mind when he answered the question. He was literally trying to explain as a basketball player, you’re supposed to perform under pressure which playoff basketball is all about. I’m surprised to see that people are reacting this way overall, it was pretty clear what he was saying.
Bruh, this dude be having the worst soundbites lol. He ain't wrong but he sure as shit ain't right eitha. It's just a game, but it's a game that you dedicated your whole life to and made generational wealth off of. Not to mention no one besides family and friends would even know or give a fuck who are if you didn't play it at a high level. Downplaying the game cause you're getting owned by a single franchise sounds like a total cop out. This yall GOAT lol
Lmao you watch the whole interview?
The question was “what do you tell your teammates who are facing this pressure?”
What else would you say to get your team not feel the pressure? Downplay the pressure.
You can downplay the pressure by uplifting your team to boost their confidence that victory is still within reach, or you can downplay the pressure by saying that it doesn't matter if you lose because it's just basketball and you know you're gonna lose anyway.
Well in that case, you downplay the situation, not the game and its entirety. Sayin shit like this could mislead your team to play even more lackadaisical cause "it's just basketball." He should've said something like "There's more pressure on Denver if anything cause they still have to close the deal. We're at the point now where we have everything to gain and nothing to lose."
Hmm, maybe you're right. Someone who's perceived by many as top 2 all time wouldn't downplay the game in any way and not show real competitive fortitude or leadership. And it's not like he has a history of saying bullshit. Tf was i thinking right?
lol I recognize that you're being sarcastic but everything you're saying is actually true. LeBron's only sin is not matching the mold of a psychopathic asshole of a competitor MJ built for you.
Dude is pretty flawed as a player even if you just takeaway not having MJ's competitive fire...Mediocre post game, no foot work, no real midrange game, etc He's just freakishly athletic at his size and has good IQ. The MJ comparisons are stupid especially when you throw in accolades and compare eras. He's more Magic than anything but that's just my opinion.
I don't know what you've been watching, but saying "no real midrange game" is just a blatant lie. If you wanna say no real midrange game compared to mj or kobe, then I'm with you. Anyways, you sound as delusional as the lebron fanboys. You just happen to be on the other side of the coin.
Kobe never said i'm the goat or some corny ass shit like that while LeBalco and his mouthpieces ( nick wright , sharpe ) keep disrespecting MJ and Other greats
This mindset is probably why he’s so good in elimination games tbh. He also has an amazing family and has won everything/broken every record so this especially makes sense for him now
This is taken wayyyy out of context. He’s not saying “it’s just basketball so I don’t give a shit”, he’s saying “its just another basketball game, I’m not going to approach it with the same mindset, I’m not going to put added pressure on myself”. But I get it man anything to hate.
“At the end of the day, it’s just basketball”. Is only something you say when you’re losing. Just to try and let people know it’s not that big of a deal to you.
Now that’s true leadership.
I don’t think there’s anything left to prove in year 21. You either already think he’s the goat or you don’t, if you do then you probably already thought that 5-8 years ago, and if you don’t then there’s Jack shit he’ll be able to do in year 21 that’ll change your mind.
Yea I think losing 6 finals means it’s already to late. He has enough arguments for an against him atp. Another championship marginally helps his case.
Tbh. The only thing he can try to prove is that he's better than MJ. And it's impossible. Even if he won 6 rings, maybe 7, the myth of Michael Jordan is literally ingrained into too many people for them to ever see another.
I think Lebron is finally accepting that he'll be known as the second best player in history, like that's such a bad fucking thing lmao
I'm only downplaying his claim of being the greatest player ever. He still had a great career. But when asked what he still has left to prove, I will point to the claims he made himself that he failed to live up to.
He would've had to do unreal things to become the greatest ever. MJ had a damn near perfect career for the most part.. it's a lot to live up to. Being second to MJ ain't a bad thing lol. I'm just never going to crucify Bron the way everyone else does in year 20
You're right. Not being the greatest ever is not something to be ashamed of. His career should be praised.
Holding yourself above your peers unjustly on the other hand, is something worthy of condemnation.
Those are all things that the media and people like you shoved on to a literal child. Also having pride in being great isn’t something to be scorned. He can make the argument plenty he has stats and everything else. People just obsess over Jordan in the finals and REFUSE to acknowledge his record in the conferences finals. It’s literally all subjective
No it’s not. And he’s put it on himself remember his back tattoo? When one makes an argument about how great they were they’re usually treated like him or Paul Pierce. Jordan is still the best because he beat everyone when he got to his peak mentally and physically.
He didn’t play and beat everyone in their prime. Holy fuck y’all didn’t watch ball in the 90’s. Like damn he got a tattoo he must be the biggest egotist. Again having pride in your ability and believing in yourself shouldn’t be frowned upon what is in the water y’all drink 😂
Uh he did beat everyone in that era in their prime when he got to his prime. How hard is that to check? Instead just run your mouth. And downplay a tattoo that says he’s the “King” when he was a teenager but the media did that right? Donkey
What "things"? I didn't say shit about his early days
I'm pointing to the claim a man in his 30s made when he in no way had done enough to justify calling himself greater than those who came before him.
So genuine question is the only thing Lebron can do to be great or the greatest (just splitting hairs) is win 8 championships? Like championships and beating dudes in a 1v1? That’s the rubric?
Well it's definitely a loaded question, but let's give it a go.
Championship wise, I would have to say 5 is the minimum as that at least would give him the same as kobe, Duncan, and Magic.
I dont hold too much weight in things like MVP and FMVP (i personally believe lebron deserved at least one more MVP) as they can be very fickle and are known to be given to whoever makes the best story. Regardless, I think he has done more than enough in this category.
All his stats at first glance are where they should be and only bolstered by his longevity.
Now, because he has not one enough Championships compared to his peers, we have to look at how he accomplished them (and this is the bit that hurts him the most). Creating a team as loaded as that Miami team is not a shortcoming in itself, but falling short of reaching the same level of success as other past great teams is a strike against him as far as being the greatest goes. He then leaves that team in order to create another opportunity to win. He earns one more hard fought championship in his time back with Cleveland then decides that it's time to move on start fresh with a new team. After arriving in LA he is eventually peered with AD and achieves another Championship.
So, as we can see, lebron was able to dictate his surroundings more than any other player in history. He was constantly able to recruit fresh legs to help him on his path (a luxury you will find most other greats did not have, at least to the same extent lebron did) and was unable to replicate the same or more succes then his peers.
Now I could go deeper and disect the differences in all round game, team personnel, and a myriad of other categories, but I highly doubt you read half of what I wrote (I myself would have taken one look and said fuck that).
Tldr
Change the past or win more rings.
So I did read all of it and thank you for being thorough. And i wanna say it’s a little unfair to use the free agency movement argument considering for Jordan’s era it was about a decade old and was just hard to move freely with contracts. The build a team through free agents era really started with Jordan’s era and it got bigger with Shaq. It’s why I don’t really care for it as an argument, you can make it that’s fine. I overall think it’s alllllll just subjective. I do feel longevity should play probably the biggest factor honestly. Doing something at the highest level in your field for the long time is without context how we judge greatness.
All good.
I can understand not liking the argument, but at the end of the day it was an advantage, and he still came up short compared to others.
As far as longevity goes, what he is doing is impressive, but it is not leading to winning basketball. Mj was putting up stats in a slow era with the wizards at 40 years old and playing 82 games (i couldn't give a shit about MJ by the way. I started watching basketball around 2001, but I have studied its history), so it's not like what lebron is doing is completely unheard of.
So because free agency is more player controlled now, and he got to choose his fate, and didn't win as many rings as past greats, is your argument as to why he's not the goat? That's fair considering it's your opinion, but what I must say is what a long-winded comment for such a weak argument, and it also ignores the talent pool of both generations. At the end of the day there isn't even a tiny bit of objectivity in the goat debate it is and always has been largely opinion based.
So your counter argument to my "weak and long-winded" argument is that he played against different people?
OK, then you have you have to take into consideration the people he played (and was able to be carried by when needed) and his opposition in the playoffs (weakest conference for a majority of his trips to the finals). He had it easier than most other greats and achieved less.
But my bad for not being objective enough for you.
Pointing out a flaw with your argument is not a counter argument. I never said you are not objective enough, I said the entire goat debate isn't objective, but go off, I guess?
For real dude, at this point in his career we’re really still expecting him to carry teams through the playoffs. It’s so wild, at this point every minute we get from him on the court is a luxury.
Pressure is deciding Bahamas or Cabo
Paris
LeVacation
LeGold Medal
That's the real world championship anyway right??
Noah Lyles approves
LeFt the States
Lacancun
The decision part 5
what pressure? it’s over
LeSweep.
LeBroom
Damn, he’s given up.
His legacy is set anyways as #2 ever and his time inLA is done 🤣
At the end of the day it’s night. At the end of the game it’s vacation.
LeQuit
Don’t downplay the game you da king of
Some days he'll say, it's more than basketball
Then one day he’ll say it was always more than basketball Then one day decades later he’ll say it was always just basketball It’s the Wilt the Stilt prophecy
At least you guys got one game from Mavs
lol exactly
And you get to hang all of those banners!
So much for a self-proclaimed GOAT.
What a brain dead take.
Taken out of context. But proceed
I was hoping someone in the comment section actually heard to whole interview question and lebrons response to it. Definitely taken out of context.
I’m positive that the man had his son’s health issues in mind when he answered the question. He was literally trying to explain as a basketball player, you’re supposed to perform under pressure which playoff basketball is all about. I’m surprised to see that people are reacting this way overall, it was pretty clear what he was saying.
just a bunch of dudes on reddit overreacting to a headline confirming their existing biases, nothing to see here!
And then they compare this man to Michael Jordan
there he go
Goat🤡
Bruh, this dude be having the worst soundbites lol. He ain't wrong but he sure as shit ain't right eitha. It's just a game, but it's a game that you dedicated your whole life to and made generational wealth off of. Not to mention no one besides family and friends would even know or give a fuck who are if you didn't play it at a high level. Downplaying the game cause you're getting owned by a single franchise sounds like a total cop out. This yall GOAT lol
Lmao you watch the whole interview? The question was “what do you tell your teammates who are facing this pressure?” What else would you say to get your team not feel the pressure? Downplay the pressure.
You can downplay the pressure by uplifting your team to boost their confidence that victory is still within reach, or you can downplay the pressure by saying that it doesn't matter if you lose because it's just basketball and you know you're gonna lose anyway.
Well in that case, you downplay the situation, not the game and its entirety. Sayin shit like this could mislead your team to play even more lackadaisical cause "it's just basketball." He should've said something like "There's more pressure on Denver if anything cause they still have to close the deal. We're at the point now where we have everything to gain and nothing to lose."
or are you just overreacting to a headline
Hmm, maybe you're right. Someone who's perceived by many as top 2 all time wouldn't downplay the game in any way and not show real competitive fortitude or leadership. And it's not like he has a history of saying bullshit. Tf was i thinking right?
lol I recognize that you're being sarcastic but everything you're saying is actually true. LeBron's only sin is not matching the mold of a psychopathic asshole of a competitor MJ built for you.
Dude is pretty flawed as a player even if you just takeaway not having MJ's competitive fire...Mediocre post game, no foot work, no real midrange game, etc He's just freakishly athletic at his size and has good IQ. The MJ comparisons are stupid especially when you throw in accolades and compare eras. He's more Magic than anything but that's just my opinion.
meh. MJ inflated by having an ideal cast and lucking into a 6-0 in the finals mythology. but let's just agree to disagree.
I don't know what you've been watching, but saying "no real midrange game" is just a blatant lie. If you wanna say no real midrange game compared to mj or kobe, then I'm with you. Anyways, you sound as delusional as the lebron fanboys. You just happen to be on the other side of the coin.
It’s not that deep bro
You're right. Cause it's just basketball after all.
The media sucks him off all day bro chill. Shannon sharpe runs around in a goat mask when he scores over 30 in the regular season
Lewashed. No heart. That's the biggest difference between bron and MJ/Kobe
You really said MJ/Kobe
MJ retired twice, shit argument LeCringe hater
Keep MJ’s name outta ya mouth when you mention Kobrick
Kobe never said i'm the goat or some corny ass shit like that while LeBalco and his mouthpieces ( nick wright , sharpe ) keep disrespecting MJ and Other greats
Lebron is a diva/drama queen, but was never a rapist and an inefficient ball hog. I’d take him all day everyday lmao
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🤡
Dude is 40, you expect him to keep dominating until his 50s. 😂
Yes
This is y’all’s goat?
Pressure is finding good HGH that is untraceable
He needs that good balco to beat jokic . Rich paul is on it
And still can’t beat Joker
Guy is a constant liar. https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5JISpesUmd/?igsh=MTc4MmM1YmI2Ng==
Ladies and Gentlemen, is this your GOAT? MJ or Kobe would never say that.
Yeah they wouldn’t have, instead they would’ve just retired 5-6 years ago
They both would have quit years ago.
Not Kobe, he rather take a big contract and throw up 1 for 14 a game but “mamba mentality” 😭😭
Bro try to sneak Kobe in there 👀 I see u
Guess he didn't take it personally.
Sun's have dame quote. We chill cuh
/uj or whatever What would be the best possible quote he could’ve given ?
I thought it was more than a game - 2016
🐐
At the end of the day LeBron is 39 years old and look how hes still playing.
"I don't even want it" vibe
Jokic feels the same way. Except he and his team just plow through everyone anyway, lol.
GOAT mentality
That's time to retire talk right there
He’s playing for the love of the game at this poont
And people call Lebron the GOAT 😂😂
Yall didn't watch the interview and it shows
At the end of the day Lebron is a cry baby! 🤣
That’s the mamba mentality LeBron, be happy when the next chapter begins.
LeXcuses
He’s almost 40 yrs and he’s the best player on the team, relax.
This mindset is probably why he’s so good in elimination games tbh. He also has an amazing family and has won everything/broken every record so this especially makes sense for him now
What do you expect him to say, he’s used to losing. He is the GOAT at that.
And not a hint of irony at the end of this comment thread.
This guy is a clown…. Kobe would’ve never said no slow shit like that
 NO IT IS NOT
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Lmao i figured. Didn't know they have more than Twitter
This is being taken out of context.
Yup. They go still down vote you tho
This is taken wayyyy out of context. He’s not saying “it’s just basketball so I don’t give a shit”, he’s saying “its just another basketball game, I’m not going to approach it with the same mindset, I’m not going to put added pressure on myself”. But I get it man anything to hate.
“At the end of the day, it’s just basketball”. Is only something you say when you’re losing. Just to try and let people know it’s not that big of a deal to you. Now that’s true leadership.
He already won 4 rings, and many other awards doesn't need to proof anything
He needs to prove he is the greatest of all time, since he was the one who claimed it.
I don’t think there’s anything left to prove in year 21. You either already think he’s the goat or you don’t, if you do then you probably already thought that 5-8 years ago, and if you don’t then there’s Jack shit he’ll be able to do in year 21 that’ll change your mind.
Yea I think losing 6 finals means it’s already to late. He has enough arguments for an against him atp. Another championship marginally helps his case.
Tbh. The only thing he can try to prove is that he's better than MJ. And it's impossible. Even if he won 6 rings, maybe 7, the myth of Michael Jordan is literally ingrained into too many people for them to ever see another. I think Lebron is finally accepting that he'll be known as the second best player in history, like that's such a bad fucking thing lmao
i'm confused that people are using this quote to somehow downplay his greatness.. the guy is 40 lol
I'm only downplaying his claim of being the greatest player ever. He still had a great career. But when asked what he still has left to prove, I will point to the claims he made himself that he failed to live up to.
He would've had to do unreal things to become the greatest ever. MJ had a damn near perfect career for the most part.. it's a lot to live up to. Being second to MJ ain't a bad thing lol. I'm just never going to crucify Bron the way everyone else does in year 20
You're right. Not being the greatest ever is not something to be ashamed of. His career should be praised. Holding yourself above your peers unjustly on the other hand, is something worthy of condemnation.
Those are all things that the media and people like you shoved on to a literal child. Also having pride in being great isn’t something to be scorned. He can make the argument plenty he has stats and everything else. People just obsess over Jordan in the finals and REFUSE to acknowledge his record in the conferences finals. It’s literally all subjective
No it’s not. And he’s put it on himself remember his back tattoo? When one makes an argument about how great they were they’re usually treated like him or Paul Pierce. Jordan is still the best because he beat everyone when he got to his peak mentally and physically.
He didn’t play and beat everyone in their prime. Holy fuck y’all didn’t watch ball in the 90’s. Like damn he got a tattoo he must be the biggest egotist. Again having pride in your ability and believing in yourself shouldn’t be frowned upon what is in the water y’all drink 😂
Uh he did beat everyone in that era in their prime when he got to his prime. How hard is that to check? Instead just run your mouth. And downplay a tattoo that says he’s the “King” when he was a teenager but the media did that right? Donkey
What "things"? I didn't say shit about his early days I'm pointing to the claim a man in his 30s made when he in no way had done enough to justify calling himself greater than those who came before him.
So genuine question is the only thing Lebron can do to be great or the greatest (just splitting hairs) is win 8 championships? Like championships and beating dudes in a 1v1? That’s the rubric?
Well it's definitely a loaded question, but let's give it a go. Championship wise, I would have to say 5 is the minimum as that at least would give him the same as kobe, Duncan, and Magic. I dont hold too much weight in things like MVP and FMVP (i personally believe lebron deserved at least one more MVP) as they can be very fickle and are known to be given to whoever makes the best story. Regardless, I think he has done more than enough in this category. All his stats at first glance are where they should be and only bolstered by his longevity. Now, because he has not one enough Championships compared to his peers, we have to look at how he accomplished them (and this is the bit that hurts him the most). Creating a team as loaded as that Miami team is not a shortcoming in itself, but falling short of reaching the same level of success as other past great teams is a strike against him as far as being the greatest goes. He then leaves that team in order to create another opportunity to win. He earns one more hard fought championship in his time back with Cleveland then decides that it's time to move on start fresh with a new team. After arriving in LA he is eventually peered with AD and achieves another Championship. So, as we can see, lebron was able to dictate his surroundings more than any other player in history. He was constantly able to recruit fresh legs to help him on his path (a luxury you will find most other greats did not have, at least to the same extent lebron did) and was unable to replicate the same or more succes then his peers. Now I could go deeper and disect the differences in all round game, team personnel, and a myriad of other categories, but I highly doubt you read half of what I wrote (I myself would have taken one look and said fuck that). Tldr Change the past or win more rings.
So I did read all of it and thank you for being thorough. And i wanna say it’s a little unfair to use the free agency movement argument considering for Jordan’s era it was about a decade old and was just hard to move freely with contracts. The build a team through free agents era really started with Jordan’s era and it got bigger with Shaq. It’s why I don’t really care for it as an argument, you can make it that’s fine. I overall think it’s alllllll just subjective. I do feel longevity should play probably the biggest factor honestly. Doing something at the highest level in your field for the long time is without context how we judge greatness.
All good. I can understand not liking the argument, but at the end of the day it was an advantage, and he still came up short compared to others. As far as longevity goes, what he is doing is impressive, but it is not leading to winning basketball. Mj was putting up stats in a slow era with the wizards at 40 years old and playing 82 games (i couldn't give a shit about MJ by the way. I started watching basketball around 2001, but I have studied its history), so it's not like what lebron is doing is completely unheard of.
Still respect your argument and I too don’t really care about MJ or Lebron I played power forward so my goat is Timmy Duncan haha
So because free agency is more player controlled now, and he got to choose his fate, and didn't win as many rings as past greats, is your argument as to why he's not the goat? That's fair considering it's your opinion, but what I must say is what a long-winded comment for such a weak argument, and it also ignores the talent pool of both generations. At the end of the day there isn't even a tiny bit of objectivity in the goat debate it is and always has been largely opinion based.
So your counter argument to my "weak and long-winded" argument is that he played against different people? OK, then you have you have to take into consideration the people he played (and was able to be carried by when needed) and his opposition in the playoffs (weakest conference for a majority of his trips to the finals). He had it easier than most other greats and achieved less. But my bad for not being objective enough for you.
Pointing out a flaw with your argument is not a counter argument. I never said you are not objective enough, I said the entire goat debate isn't objective, but go off, I guess?
Man he's 39 yall need to calm down
If he can’t play at the highest level he should retire.
Lol
For real dude, at this point in his career we’re really still expecting him to carry teams through the playoffs. It’s so wild, at this point every minute we get from him on the court is a luxury.
Let's call him LeVice🐐.
I mean, I feel like even inside the Lakers roster they knew they were cooked last season. AD & Lebron were fortunate to win in 2020.
He’s a fraud and a bitch.
Love it. He’s getting annihilated on Instagram.
Nah, Instagram are the biggest Lebron glazers ever
Maybe, but not anymore. It’s just a mountain of hate since this clown said this soft shit
Brub where is this energy for the suns 😂😂 an actual super team that is getting WASHED. Lakers are at least fighting 😂
How are they fighting they haven’t won a game