Is Lebron James overrated?

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Zebo

Elite Member
Jul 29, 2001
39,398
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He's the next Magic Johnson. Grace, power, intell and size all rolled into one package. I can't wait to see him play.
 

konichiwa

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
15,077
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I bet he'll be average his first year or two, then explode. He can't possibly live up to this hype, though ... no one could.
 

digitalsm

Diamond Member
Jul 11, 2003
5,253
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Originally posted by: Zebo
He's the next Magic Johnson. Grace, power, intell and size all rolled into one package. I can't wait to see him play.

Lets remember one thing. He is on the Cavs...
 

nitsuj3580

Platinum Member
Jun 13, 2001
2,668
14
81
Originally posted by: hdeck
Originally posted by: ElFenix
hes never played an NBA game in his life, i'd say so. i hope he fails horrifficly

ah, gotta love the people that want successful people to fail
rolleye.gif


People just didn't hand him everything he's gotten thus far. Any b'ball player has to work extremely hard to go along with the physical gifts to get this type of hype.

Cavs won't make the playoffs but LeBron will definitely be an awesome player in years to come.
 

spanky

Lifer
Jun 19, 2001
25,716
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the card market has been inflated for years. one of the reasons i stopped collecting. booo!
 

Ranger X

Lifer
Mar 18, 2000
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I don't think Jordan got such a hype like LeBron. Yes, like someone had said earlier. He's on the Cavs ... he'll start next year and will learn the hard way what NBA is all about. I say give him 3 seasons before he starts doing damage but in the meantime, he will probably average 12-5-5.
 

spanky

Lifer
Jun 19, 2001
25,716
4
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Originally posted by: Ranger X
I don't think Jordan got such a hype like LeBron. Yes, like someone had said earlier. He's on the Cavs ... he'll start next year and will learn the hard way what NBA is all about. I say give him 3 seasons before he starts doing damage but in the meantime, he will probably average 12-5-5.

don't forget the extra 5.... for turnovers ;)
 

Zebo

Elite Member
Jul 29, 2001
39,398
19
81
Originally posted by: digitalsm
Originally posted by: Zebo
He's the next Magic Johnson. Grace, power, intell and size all rolled into one package. I can't wait to see him play.

Lets remember one thing. He is on the Cavs...

The sal cap is a joke... LA or NY will have him in five years like with O'neal. I was just stating my opinion and who he reminds me of phyically and skill wise at the same age he probably will not meet with the same success as MJ but the haters need to lay off.
 

NeoV

Diamond Member
Apr 18, 2000
9,504
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LeBron haters.....jealous....he has worked harder to develop his basketball skills than 99% of us have worked at anything, so get off him..he didn't ask everyone to follow his every move...



Write this down - he will start in the all-star game THIS year. Probably not deserved, but he is going to play in front of a full house every game at home and on the road.

Yes, he is on the Cavs, but take a look at the Cavs roster, and imagine how good these guys can be in a year or two if they keep them together...Ricky Davis, Dejuan Wagner, Carlos Boozer, Darius Miles, Zyndrunas Ilkauskas...they have good size on the bench, a solid, low-turnover guy at the point in K.Olie, a nice young guard in JR Bremer (why did the Celts deal him?)..

LeBron has all the skills, and while he has been over-publicized, he is going to be a fantastic NBA player, very soon....

17-20 per game this year, 6-7 assists, 5 boards...sure, he'll probably have a few turnovers per game, but he'll also make some plays and passes that we have never seen before.

 

BamBam215

Golden Member
Feb 17, 2000
1,217
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he's definately overrated considering the level of competition he has faced so far. the only speculation anyone can make is that he has the potential to be great. keyword potential. the guy cannot shoot very well from the perimeter. i give him credit in assists and flashy moves. but guess what? you are not as free to do the kind of risky things he does in high school ball in the NBA. anyone who thinks lebron can live up to the hype in the first few years gotta hop off the hype wagon. kobe, mcgrady, garnett, etc have shown potential entering the nba and it took them a few years to grow into a superstar. let's hope lebron will be one as well but i don't know, the probabilities are not in his favor. (*cough* tyson chandler, mike dunleavy's son, kwame brown, eddie curry, etc.)
 

gwlam12

Diamond Member
Apr 4, 2001
6,946
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Originally posted by: ElFenix
hes never played an NBA game in his life, i'd say so. i hope he fails horrifficly

it's not his fault he's hyped up, so i think it's unfair to him for us to hope he fails.
 

nitsuj3580

Platinum Member
Jun 13, 2001
2,668
14
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Originally posted by: BamBam215
he's definately overrated considering the level of competition he has faced so far. the only speculation anyone can make is that he has the potential to be great. keyword potential. the guy cannot shoot very well from the perimeter. i give him credit in assists and flashy moves. but guess what? you are not as free to do the kind of risky things he does in high school ball in the NBA. anyone who thinks lebron can live up to the hype in the first few years gotta hop off the hype wagon. kobe, mcgrady, garnett, etc have shown potential entering the nba and it took them a few years to grow into a superstar. let's hope lebron will be one as well but i don't know, the probabilities are not in his favor. (*cough* tyson chandler, mike dunleavy's son, kwame brown, eddie curry, etc.)

maybe this is partially hindsight, but i dont really think you can compare chandler, brown, curry, etc to kobe, tmac, garnett, and probably lebron when talking about their jump to the NBA

kobe, tmac, garnett began the whole go from high school to the nba thing. They did this because they were unbelievable players in high school and way above the norm. I think there was more of a certainty with these players that people just knew that they could make the jump and would develop into special players. I think James falls in the category.

Unfortunately, because of the above, any big man with skills that is 6'10" in high school thinks he can go right to the NBA and NBA executives are craving to be the ones to find the next kobe, tmac, kg, etc. and encouraging these young players to enter the draft by drafting them high. Players like Chandler, Brown, Curry did not get nearly as much hype as kobe, tmac, kg and now lebron did coming out of high school. they were considered good projects with lots of potential where as kobe, tmac, kg and lebron were/are pretty much considered sure fire superstars once they got to the nba and got a couple years of experience to develop. The only two guys i can think of that are the exception to the rule in this category are Jermaine O Neal and possibly Rashard Lewis.

Both groups of players have potential but the probability that the really hyped up ones (kobe, tmac, kg and now lebron) is pretty much 100% that they'll succeed after 2-3 years in the league where as all these big man projects like brown, curry, etc still have a ways to go but never got the hype to begin with.
 

NeoV

Diamond Member
Apr 18, 2000
9,504
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before you go dismissing E.Curry and T.Chandler, check their stats from the 2nd half of last season...they came on very strongly....Chandler can be a matchup nightmare, and an excellent defender/shot blocker/rebounder...

Tyson Chandler was featured on 60 minutes when he was in the 8th grade...he actually was the first HS kid to get nationwide pub..of course LeBron got that X10...
 

nitsuj3580

Platinum Member
Jun 13, 2001
2,668
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Originally posted by: NeoV
before you go dismissing E.Curry and T.Chandler, check their stats from the 2nd half of last season...they came on very strongly....Chandler can be a matchup nightmare, and an excellent defender/shot blocker/rebounder...

Tyson Chandler was featured on 60 minutes when he was in the 8th grade...he actually was the first HS kid to get nationwide pub..of course LeBron got that X10...

i guess I'm just talking from personal experience but I heard the names kobe, mcgrady, garnett, and now lebron A LOT more coming out of high school and they have all became NBA superstars.

I am far from dismissing Chandler, Curry, and even Kwame Brown (got to cheer for the home team) but although they did get some publicity, I don't remember hearing their names mentioned as much as I heard Kobe, Garnett, and mcgrady. that doesn't mean they won't ever reach 'superstar' status because they are still obviously very young and it took J O'Neal a few years to blossom.

Just to go along with the thread, so far the super hyped up high schoolers like kobe, kg, and tmac have lived up to their hype by being 3 of the top 10 players in the NBA and I think LeBron will be right there with them when it's said in done.
 

BamBam215

Golden Member
Feb 17, 2000
1,217
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Originally posted by: NeoV
before you go dismissing E.Curry and T.Chandler, check their stats from the 2nd half of last season...they came on very strongly....Chandler can be a matchup nightmare, and an excellent defender/shot blocker/rebounder...

Tyson Chandler was featured on 60 minutes when he was in the 8th grade...he actually was the first HS kid to get nationwide pub..of course LeBron got that X10...



I'm sorry but Tyson Chandler and Eddie Curry has proven to be a flop. I'm not saying they are bad players but compared to the hype that surrounded them during their NBA draft year (2000? can't remember and too lazy to lookup), they were supposed to be contenders; Chandler being the next big PF and Eddie Curry being the next Shaq. Chicago luckily landed BOTH players and guess what, Chicago is still the bottom feeder. Don't get me wrong. With the right coaching and advice, I believe both players can become great (not super stars though), but to a lesser degree, their hype was built around potential, just like Lebron, which doesn't always play through.


P.S. If I remember correctly, Chandler was drafted out of Dominguez High for the other guy that said Lebron (kobe, tmac, etc) were "special" because they were noticed in high school. And T-Mac benched for Vancouver for 1-2 seasons before "blowing" up in Orlando. I don't think anyone ever thought he would become a superstar (with the exception of good ol' Jerry West who failed to acquire him in a proposed trade. Imagine T-Mac, Kobe, Shaq. hehe).