LEGACY TALK
A.J. Hoffman: It's time to appreciate what you have in Lebron James
May 18, 2018, 7:25 am
Lebron James is the best of his generation. Gregory Shamus
It seems we get to this point every year in the NBA playoffs. The point where we all start asking the same question.
“How far can LeBron James carry the Cavaliers this season?”
It’s not surprising that we ask it. Whatever you think of his standing on the “all-time” list of NBA greats, he has been almost unquestionably the best player of his era. Thus, just like we did with Magic and Jordan and Kobe, we dissect his every move almost to the point of absurdity.
2010 was the last time we had an NBA finals without LeBron. That 7-year streak is the longest of any player in history that didn’t play for the Celtics in the late-50’s to early 60’s (when there were four teams in each conference).
The fact that he is currently down in the Eastern Conference Finals is only surprising because, well, he is LeBron.
So far in these playoffs, James has been magnificent. He leads all playoff scorers with 33.1 PPG. He has averaged both 9.2 assists and rebounds in these playoffs. He had a 42 point, 10 rebound, 12 assist showing in Game 2 against Boston, in a game where he took a nasty shoulder to the jaw from Jayson Tatum.
This Cavaliers team, should they find a way to make it to the Finals, is probably the weakest James-led playoff roster since his first finals appearance back in 2007 when the Cavs were swept by San Antonio. The 2015 team that lost to the Warriors was injured (Kevin Love in the first round of the playoffs and Kyrie Irving in Game 1 of the finals) but still more talented than this team. They finished the regular season fourth in the Eastern Conference, the lowest a James-led team has finished since 2008 when the Cavaliers were a 4 seed.
The offseason went horrifically wrong for Cleveland, as Irving forced his way out and the Cavs got Isaiah Thomas back in return. Thomas never fit with the Cavs, and his style of play and lack of production made Cleveland look downright bad at times. It never quite rounded into the shape they had hoped, and at midseason Thomas and several other Cavaliers were sent packing, undoubtably at the behest of LeBron.
Does this mean he is personally accountable for how they perform? That is hard to say. While he has a lot of clout, more than any other player in the league, he isn’t a GM and he isn’t an owner. If the Cavaliers decided it was in the team’s best interest to make the moves that James wanted, is that on him or the organization? Cleveland is already in a precarious situation because they have to balance trying to win another championship while LeBron is still in town with trying to keep him happy enough to keep him around for the foreseeable future.
If the Cavs end up losing to the Celtics, it seems like there would not be much reason for LeBron to stay in Cleveland beyond this season. It would also, once again, subject him to the scrutiny of not only his detractors, but also the fans in Cleveland (let’s not forget how quickly they turned on him after “The Decision.” We will see the inevitable “LeBum” memes and there will be 29 fanbases calling him a sellout and a ring chaser. There will also be one fanbase who loves and adores him and realize that his mere presence makes them a favorite to contend for a title immediately.
What if he does find a way to pull this off against the Celtics? What if he carries a team where no other player is averaging six made baskets per night all the way to the Finals? With the modern NBA built on “super teams” and “Big 3s,” the truth is James will have dragged a pack of B and C-level players to yet another NBA Finals, where the nitpicking starts all over.
If the Cavaliers lose to either the Warriors or the Rockets, it will be another example for people to point to for the purpose of detracting from his legacy. It won’t matter if he is great in a losing effort. Look no further than the aforementioned 2015 Finals, where LeBron averaged 36 points per game and stretched the series with the Warriors to six games despite playing without Irving and Love.
If the Cavaliers were to win the championship, it wouldn’t matter because Michael Jordan never lost one and didn’t have to join up with Kevin Love to win his rings. Look no further than the 2016 Finals where he averaged 30 points per game and beat a team that had the best regular season in the history of the NBA.
The greatest player of this generation is still on the floor, and still fighting hard for another ring, and you have two choices. You can either appreciate his greatness and effort regardless of the outcome, or you can sit back and stubbornly pretend that he isn’t nearly as good as the media makes him out to be. Whatever happens in this series and beyond, try to put aside nicknames and all-time rankings and Player A vs. Player B comparisons, even if only for a little while. Just soak it in, and try to appreciate one of the best who has ever touched a ball go all out to add to his legacy.
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Astros keep doing this, and it’s getting hard to ignore
Jun 25, 2025, 10:01 pm
While the rolling Astros have a week of possible World Series preview matchups against the Phillies and Cubs, it’s the Rockets who made the biggest local sports headline with their acquisition of Kevin Durant. What a move! Of course there is risk involved in trading for a guy soon to turn 37 years old and who carries an injury history, but balancing risk vs. reward is a part of the game. This is a fabulous move for the Rockets. It’s understood that there are dissenters to this view. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, including people with the wrong opinion! Let’s dig in.
The Rockets had a wonderful season in winning 52 games before their disappointing first-round playoff loss to the Warriors, but like everyone else in the Western Conference, they were nowhere close to Oklahoma City’s caliber. While they finished second in the West, the Rockets only finished four games ahead of the play-in. That letting the stew simmer with further growth among their young players would yield true championship contention was no given for 2025-26 or beyond.
Kevin Durant is one of the 10 greatest offensive players the NBA has ever seen. Among his current contemporaries only Stephen Curry and Nikola Jokic make that list. For instance, Durant offensively has clearly been better than the late and legendary Kobe Bryant. To view it from a Houston perspective, Durant has been an indisputably greater offensive force than the amazing Hakeem Olajuwon. But this is not a nostalgia trip in which the Rockets are trading for a guy based on what he used to be. While Durant could hit the wall at any point, living in fear that it’s about to happen is no way to live because KD, approaching his 18th NBA season, is still an elite offensive player.
As to the durability concern, Durant played more games (62) this past season than did Fred VanVleet, Jabari Smith, and Tari Eason. The season before he played more games (75) than did VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, and Alperen Sengun. In each of the last two seasons Durant averaged more minutes per game (36.9) than any Rocket. That was stupid and/or desperate of the Suns, the Rockets will be smarter. Not that the workload eroded Durant’s production or efficiency. Over the two seasons he averaged almost 27 points per game while shooting 52 percent from the floor, 42 percent from behind the three-point line, and 85 percent from the free throw line. Awesomeness. The Rockets made the leap to being a very good team despite a frankly crummy half-court offense. The Rockets ranked 21st among the 30 NBA teams in three-point percentage, and dead last in free throw percentage. Amen Thompson has an array of skills and looks poised to be a unique star. Alas, Thompson has no credible jump shot. VanVleet is not a creator, Smith has limited handle. Adding Durant directly addresses the Rockets’ most glaring weakness.
The price the Rockets paid was in the big picture, minimal, unless you think Jalen Green is going to become a bonafide star. Green is still just 23 years old and spectacular athletically, but nothing he has done over four pro seasons suggests he’s on the cusp of greatness. In no season has Green even shot the league average from the floor or from three. His defense has never been as good as it should be given his athleticism. Compared to some other two-guards who made the NBA move one year removed from high school, four seasons into his career Green is waaaaaay behind where Shae Gilgeous-Alexander, Anthony Edwards, and Devin Booker were four seasons in, and now well behind his draft classmate Cade Cunningham. Dillon Brooks was a solid pro in two seasons here and shot a career-best from three in 2024-2025, but he’s being replaced by Kevin Durant! In terms of the draft pick capital sent to Phoenix, five second round picks are essentially meaningless. The Rockets have multiple extra first round picks in the coming years. As for the sole first-rounder dealt away, whichever player the Rockets would have taken 10th Wednesday night would have been rather unlikely to crack the playing rotation.
VanVleet signs extension
Re-signing Fred VanVleet to a two-year, 50 million dollar guarantee is sensible. In a vacuum, VanVleet was substantially overpaid at the over 40 mil he made per season the last two. He’s a middle-of-the-pack starting point guard. But his professionalism and headiness brought major value to the Rockets’ kiddie corps while their payroll was otherwise very low. Ideally, Reed Sheppard makes a leap to look like an NBA lead guard in his second season, after a pretty much zippo of a rookie campaign. Sheppard is supposed to be a lights-out shooter. For the Rockets to max out, they need two sharpshooters on the court to balance Thompson’s presence.
For Astro-centric conversation, join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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