[bobbybParticipant]

I do not understand why people still put this guy on a pedestal. He is GREAT player, but he is not a champion. What is the excuse now? Every year in Cleveland ,the GM made trades, FA signings and got the best who was available. Now, he is on a team with 2 other all stars. Why doesnt Dirk get any respect? Did people not watch the finals?

[McDunkin]

Have you been on this sight at all?

 

http://www.nbadraft.net/forum/so-lebron-said

[McDunkin]

*website

[Pro-21Participant]

LBJ is the best player in the league…try to argue differently and you’ll seem stupid, and you’ll notice that people like STeve Nash, Chris Paul , and Kevin Durant don’t have to win championships and have accomplished much less than LBJ, and yet people will still give them all the praise in the world. I call that HATING. There are no such things as LBJ apologists, just reasonable people looking at his stats and ability to dominate a game.

[Demarcus OnealParticipant]

 No one has ever said Steve Nash,  Chris Paul or Durant were the best player in League and he has no excuse to not win a chmapionship yet. Kobe ftw

[JoeWolf1]

 Someone has to be the "bad guy"

[ItsVictorOladipoParticipant]

Haha, as someone who considers Lebron the best player in the league right now and someone on this board who has said that I am very confident that Lebron will win at least two championships and wind up one of the top 20 players of all time by the time he retires I will take on the burden of being a "Lebron apologist" and come up with some answers.

I do not understand why people still put this guy on a pedestal. He is GREAT player, but he is not a champion.

Few people I know actually put him on a pedestal. You yourself say he is a great player. He does some things on the court which no man with his size has ever done and he has the physical ability to be the GOAT. It’s not about putting him on a pedestal it’s about appreciating him for being the great player that he is. Obviously he needs a few championships for his legacy to be secure nobody is disputing that.

What is the excuse now? Every year in Cleveland ,the GM made trades, FA signings and got the best who was available.

Are you serious? Adding an over the hill Shaq and Jamison don’t count as major moves in my books. That was proven this past season when LBJ left the Cavs and they were the worst team in the league. He was taking a team that without him would have been the worst team in the NBA to 60+ win seasons.

Now, he is on a team with 2 other all stars.

Yep, so he has no more excuses, time for him to win a championship. That being said he has 3-5 more years to do it in Miami with Wade and Bosh and seeing as how they went to the finals last year they will certainly be contenders.

Why doesnt Dirk get any respect? Did people not watch the finals?

Dirk gets plenty of respect. He’s a surefire future Hall of Famer, has won an MVP trophy, is widely considered the best PF in the game today and would probably be on most peoples short lists for the 40 greatest players of all time. And you know what? Many people, myself included, paid him that kind of respect before the championship win last June.

[bobbybParticipant]

a time machine.. The Cavs made many trades/ FA signing, They made the best deal "available"  Which free agent trade deal did the Cavs not got after? If there is no one AVAILABLE you cant work magic.

[Pro-21Participant]

 I’m just saying give him a chance, and whos better than LBJ ? Kobe is obviously NOT better.

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

"Kobe is obviously NOT better."

He’s not as young.

[Pro-21Participant]

 yeah who cares, so that means he cant be better, and dirk def. isnt better and durant def. isnt better even though ppl try and say he is even though he hasnt even been to the finals lmao and everyone always makes the argument that kobes still better …im just saying WHO would you say is better than LBJ?

[TRC1991Participant]

@ the guy arguing about the pieces dan gilbert added

 

– a 37 year old shaq

– a non defense-playing antawn jamison

– mo williams

 

you put kobe on that team and its hard to make a case for him getting to the finals let alone winning a ring

[marcusfizer21Participant]

 WHo in the blue hell thinks that Dirk doesn’t get the respect??? I, for one, don’t think he was disrespected at all… He was already an MVP, an All-Star player and last season, the way he lead Dallas to a championship raised the level of respect by the fans for him in more ways than one could ever imagine… Unbelievable how Dirk has remained humble all throughout… 

[mikeyvthedonParticipant]

LeBron James has been a pretty awesome player, though. Dirk Nowitzki just won a championship, albeit with amazing clutch play and a few fantastic performances throughout the play-offs. Still, he lost the championship and had a pretty awful series against Miami in 2006. He is an amazing player, I do not think people take anything away from Dirk Nowitzki, but many feel that LeBron James is the better individual player overall. He was not in the NBA Finals, which is huge, but Dirk went through the same thing for a good 12 years before this season.

Now, I am admitting I thought Dirk Nowitzki was great in the Finals. He averaged 26 ppg and 9.7 rpg while shooting a solid 37.8% from 3 and an amazing 97.8% from the line. Still, his 41.6% FG percentage does not necessarily jump off of the page. You have to take shots to make shots, so he killed LeBron with that. Plus, I do not know what his 4th quarter numbers were, but I am guessing they mop the floor with LeBron as well.

Nonetheless, while Dirk was their leader, winning the Finals was a team effort. Other Dallas players shot better than 41.6% to help the team win. Jason Terry was amazing, their defensive schemes were fantastic and their role players were huge when they needed to be.

I am not apologizing for LeBron’s behavior in certain situations, but for those who are angry at him for certain things, when it comes down to basketball, the guy has been a pretty awesome player and accomplished just about everything short of winning a ring. Winning the ring would necessarily cement him as being the best player in the league, but it definitely would not hurt. Still, say what you will about Miami being Dwyane Wade’s team or him not showing up in the clutch, he had a very solid play-off’s up until most of the Finals (Could say much of the same about Nowitzki in 2006) and while he is not perfect, he is an incredibly talented basketball player who has had his team competing for a title the past 3 years.

I think that Kobe was the best player in the league for a long time, but I think LeBron is the best right now. If you think otherwise, that is your prerogative, but the players you name in front of LeBron James, odds are they are not perfect either, even if you like them more and they have never done "The Decision" special. Personally, I do not like everything LeBron says or does, but I just tend to think he has had a pretty fantastic career up to this point and will more than likely continue to be not only at the center of the discussion for the best players in the league, but eventually in a discussion of being a top 10 player of All-Time. Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant are clearly far in front of him on a career scale, and both won rings at an earlier stage in their career, but the Heat will certainly be in the championship discussion and LeBron James will certainly be a big reason why they are.

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