It's certainly possible but two championships, while quite an achievement considering the number of NBA greats who haven't won any, puts him in a category of "great career, but he ONLY won 2". If he wins 3 or more, now you're talking about meeting expectations. Lebron gets into the Hall of Fame if he retires right now. But should he not win any championships, he'll have to put up astronomical numbers (scoring titles, MVPs, triple doubles, etc) for about 5 to 7 more years to be considered as having maximized his career. Look at Wilt Chamberlain. He's considered as one of the top 3 centers of all time not because he won 2 championships, but because of his numbers. Acknowledgement of his 2 NBA titles pretty much always come with a "but it was only 2". Still, I see Lebron with a doughnut in the "number of titles won" column at the end of his career.
well i could be wrong, but i do think lebron will get a championship... eventually. will not be anytime soon, but dude has good conditioning, which means he will be in the league for a good while... and with time he will get smart and learn how to play in a system that isn't designed for him as the primary... and at that phase he will get the ring. but it won't happen until then.
If he doesn't win as the primary, it doesn't count. He has to win as "the man" on the squad. Clyde Drexler, who was the focus of the team's offense, didn't win a championship while with the Portland Trailblazers. He did win a championship while playing second fiddle to Hakeem Olajuwon but no one cares. The same is true of Gary Payton's championship with the Miami Heat. If Karl Malone, who never won a championship while being the focal point of the Utah Jazz offense, had won one during his single season with the Lakers, it would have been considered "piggy backing". You have to win one as the primary offense of your team. You get no argument from me!
Newpower he'll likely win a deuce because he's such a unique player. It's appears though he's just a little too friendly with his team mates. Like Jordan Kobe has a little ass hole in him and commands his team mates to be on point. It's hard to do that when you are so buddy buddy with them and they need to stop all that dancing. That shyte has gotten them nathan, zip, zip, zero out this mutha F'er. Since when were the expectations for LeBron meant three or more rings? Uhhh no. I dig Kobe, but Lebron is the better all around player not starting this season, but the season prior. Kobe has the better team by faaaaaaaaaaaaar. I think it's fair to say if LeBron was on the Lakers counting this past year and going back a duece, he'd have AT LEAST a ring.
...Furthermore I am rescinding my statement about LeBron staying with the Cavs. I now believe he's out and on his way to Chicago with Chris Bosh. The recent salary dump by the Bulls and with Chris Bosh stating he's waiting on LeBron speak volumes. BUT! The kicker is it has been reported the Wes Wesley was overheard saying Lebron is outta Cleveland. Google Wes's name and you'll discover he's probably the biggest mover and shaker in the NBA that you never heard of.
No one said verbatum that he's going to win multiple championships. However, the man (boy at the time!) was crowned "King" James from the time he was in high school. Great things have been, not only predicted, but expected of Lebron from the moment ESPN televised one of his HIGH SCHOOL GAMES LIVE! It's certainly fair to say that Lebron would have a ring if he and Kobe swapped teams, but that doesn't make it true. They're completely different players with different strengths. Superstar transplant scenarios are as mythical as "pound for pound" lists in boxing. They're fun but there's no way to know if star player A would win if transplanted with star player B. My guess is Lebron wouldn't have the mean streak needed to assist with helping Pau Gosal become a tougher player, nor help with keeping Ron Artest in line. I can't see Kobe winning with the Cavs squad with its current roster either.
Everybody has made a valid point, but for one thing, I am tired of the incessant comparisons between Kobe Bryant and Lebron James. They are different types of players, with different approaches and mentality, at different stages in their careers. Their career paths have been decidedly divergent. But since we must, here I said it, Kobe Bryant is the better player. I thought this postseason settled that silly, inane "debate". If we were talking about the better athlete, Lebron wins in a landslide. But we're talking the best basketball player. Let the truth be said, Lebron James is among the top 3 basketball players in the league. He might be the most efficient scorer, possessing a unique combination of speed, size and athleticism unseen since probably Oscar Robertson. He is always a triple-double candidate on any given night. The scariest thing is that he can only get better as a basketball player. He is only just coming into his peak, which is frightening to the rest of the NBA given his intractable needs. Which leads me to my next point ... For all the natural ability, potential Lebron possesses and his potential to be among the Top 5 players of all time, his game is still lacking some fundamental intangibles. The 800 pound gorilla in the room is that he still is not a technically gifted player. He turns the ball over too frequently, he is one of the most streaky jumpshooters in the NBA, despite the media insisting "his jumpshot has improved." Say what you will about #24, with the game tied 98-98 with 8 seconds on the shot clock, I don't even want to know anybody not named Kobe Bean Bryant. I'm not so sure I have the same confidence in Lebron James. He may possess a superior statistical breakdown, but numbers do lie. Similarly, he does not possess the leadership skills Kobe Bryant has (finally) learned. Lebron may be the great personality, a likeable person and a warm teammate, but it's very difficult to lead a group of people you are too friendly with. Some of the greatest players in the game like Oscar, Kareem, Bird, Wilt and even MJ himself were some of the most boorish individuals ever. But that didn't matter to them - that they were probably disliked by their teammates - because to them, winning was the only thing. They had no tolerance for the prancing around, picture taking, flexing and outlandish buffoonery the Cavaliers were notorious for. You might argue that people show passion and concentration in different ways, but all of that clownish behavior exudes no veneer of class or dignity. The truth is, Bron does not (yet) possess a winning mentality. He, like Dwight Howard, often seem too detached and indifferent when their backs are against the wall. He does not have that irascible drive to win that Kobe, Mike, Kareem and to some extent, Larry Bird possessed. Until he does that, sorry but he'll always be the inferior basketball player.
i get what you're saying, but also it isn't true. was pippen the primary offense of the bulls? michael cooper or byron scott, derek fisher, with the lakers? dennis johnson with the celtics? i think clyde legitimately helped the rockets get a ring. it wasn't like sam cassell chiming in on the celtics run during their last championship.
Pippen, Cooper, Scott, Johnson, and Fisher? Come on man! None of the players you mentioned were ever considered the alpha male on their teams. All were second bananas to "the man" on their squads who, by the way, just happened to be all time greats. They're all lauded for helping the legends win multiple championships but none could ever be seriously mentioned in the "is he the greatest ever?" conversation. Clyde certainly helped the Rockets win a championship, no doubt. He played a large role in bringing the trophy home. But it wasn't his team. Yes, he won a championship. But it wasn't "his" championship.
yea, i'm lost now... "greatest ever" convo? is that where this started/is going? then simple answer, lebron isn't even close. gotta prove yourself. period.
I don't see it happening but if it does, it could be intriguing. Garnett, Pierce and Allen never won a thing before they all converged on Boston's skyline. If James, Wade and Bosh indeed become Miami's "Three Amigos", they may put a hurtin' on this here NBA thang!
Unlikely, but not impossible. Seeing as someone (or two guys) are gonna be seeing a pay cut, they are both strong personality who want to be built around, and like it or not, you need solid role players to win anything. Even if you have three superstars who are likely HOF'ers in 20 years time, the absence of a bench of supporting players makes it damn near impossible to go all the way. Besides, Lebron and Chris Bosh have made it clear from their statements that they would rather be seen as "the man" than someone else's sidekick. I'm not sure a seismic trio of these guys is in their personal best interests.
Phil Jackson OFFICIALLY will be returning to the Lakers... THREE-PEAT LOS ANGELES (AP) -Lakers coach Phil Jackson will return next season, putting off retirement for at least another year to chase his 12th NBA championship. Jackson made the announcement Thursday with a news release. The two-time defending champions' coach said last week he was leaning toward retirement after another long season, but he changed his mind after getting a week to rest up at his offseason home in Montana. "Count me in," Jackson said. "After a couple weeks of deliberation, it is time to get back to the challenge of putting together a team that can defend its title in the 2010-11 season. It'll be the last stand for me, and I hope a grand one." Jackson, who will turn 65 later this year, is the winningest coach in playoff history and the most successful coach in league history by almost any measure.
This news makes me happy and sad. Happy, that I'll get to see Phil make an attempt at one more three peat throughout his career. This would make it his 4th, three-peat. Sad, because after he leaves, the Lakers team as a whole will never be the same again, for better or worse. I'm guessing, for worse. It has been good having Phil on the Lakers. He will surely be missed.
