In the early years of his career, LeBron James was often accused of hubris. There was the large tattoo on his body, in which he labeled himself the “Chosen One”. There was the hour-long TV show he staged alone at the time to announce the decision about his team change. And accordingly great was the schadenfreude when he, with the supposedly best team of all time, the then Miami Heat, lost the NBA Finals to Dirk Nowitzki’s Dallas Mavericks.
James no longer has to fear such mockery today. His life’s work as a basketball player and as a personality is unchallenged sixteen years after the “Decision.” James has fulfilled the expectations he set, if not surpassed them. Only the more academic debate about whether he or Michael Jordan should be considered the greatest player of all time still moves people. James himself answers it diplomatically by saying that their playing styles are not comparable and that both can be rightly called “great.”
What James is delivering these days, however, is indeed incomparable. James led the Los Angeles Lakers to a dominant triumph in the first round of the NBA playoffs against the Houston Rockets, even though neither bookmakers nor experts had bet a cent on the Lakers.
The Lakers’ triumph (4-2) was all the more remarkable and surprising because the Lakers had to start the playoffs without their current superstar Luka Dončić. The 27-year-old is the league’s best scorer and should have led the team, James was 41 years old in his 23rd NBA season and was only expected to be a supporting role.
Best Player of the Series
Yet James, who completed his 298th playoff game last weekend, could seamlessly slip into the role of the leader. He brought with him the natural authority to direct the team, with his four championships and ten Finals appearances. A serious look here, a nod of the head there was enough to tell the younger colleagues, including his son, what they should do.
Even more impressive is that James filled the leadership position on the court as well. His statistics marked him as the strongest player of the series. And he could not only match the pace and aggression of players half his age, but he could outpace them as well. He forced both and challenged his teammates.
Whoever saw Dirk Nowitzki after 21 years in the league trudging through his last two seasons with a thoroughly battered body can appreciate how extraordinary it is that James still plays at the absolute highest level and not just for a few minutes, but at least 35 minutes per game. James attributes his longevity to spending, much like his football counterpart Tom Brady, an enormous amount of time on taking care of his capital, his body. This ranges from cryotherapy to infrared sauna to extensive mobility work. It is said he spends about 1.5 million dollars per year solely on regeneration and physiotherapy. Chosen, however, perhaps especially in one respect—the genetics have been kind to him.
When it comes to his athletic ambition, the graybeard, as he is now also called in the league, has grown more composed. A fifth title would be presumptuous, especially since the Lakers face the defending Oklahoma in the second round. James thinks game by game and tries to savor every night he can still be on the floor. He has nothing left to prove. And the debate about whether he is greater than Jordan is one he cannot win anyway.
