LeBron James is all set to enter the 20th season of his NBA career. Despite the fact that he will turn 38 years old by the end of this year, he is still considered one of the best players in the league.
Obviously, he still has what it takes to arguably win at least one more ring before retiring from the league. But if you compare the current LeBron James to what he was during his first stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers, you’ll see some striking differences.
Although the current LBJ might be a more complete player, James, during the Cavs era, was a freak of nature. He pulled off unbelievable athletic plays on a nightly basis.
One such example of this was when LeBron almost single-handedly gave the Boston Celtics a run for their money. While the Celtics ended up winning the series 4-3, if LeBron had some help around him, he would have definitely defeated the Celtics.
Glen Davis was part of that 2008 Celtics team, and he recently revealed his thoughts on facing James during that series, among other things.
“MF was just a DOG.” Glen Davis reflects on LeBron nearly defeating the Celtics in the 2008 Eastern Conference Semifinals. pic.twitter.com/S873mwX8rl
— All the Smoke (@allthesmokeprod) July 20, 2022
“Motherf****r was just a dog, young dog…Cause with LeBron you gotta make that motherf****r see five, every time…Watching him in the beginning of his journey, for me was just magical…I played against Bron, he’s special. I love Bron, Bron’s a great guy. I love what he’s doing. It was just crazy to guard that motherf****r. He was a young dog but like we gave him pressure points, you see him bust, cause with LeBron you gotta make that motherf****r see five, every time”
Davis saw firsthand what James was capable of during the physical prime of his career. But that doesn’t mean that Davis has always praised the King. In fact, in the same podcast, he also called out LeBron for ‘crying’ during their matchups.
Regardless of whether you love or hate LeBron, seeing him play during those early Cavaliers and Heat days was simply a delight for fans. LBJ still has some of that athleticism left today, but it’s nowhere close to where it used to be during the late 2000s and early 2010s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZhCU6dncrA
