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Reading: Kobe Bryant And Carmelo Anthony Called Out LeBron James After He Twice Passed Up A Potential Game-Winner In The 2012 All-Star Game
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Home > NBA News & Analysis > Kobe Bryant And Carmelo Anthony Called Out LeBron James After He Twice Passed Up A Potential Game-Winner In The 2012 All-Star Game

Kobe Bryant And Carmelo Anthony Called Out LeBron James After He Twice Passed Up A Potential Game-Winner In The 2012 All-Star Game

LeBron James was called out by Kobe Bryant and Carmelo Anthony for twice passing up a potential game-winner in the 2012 All-Star Game.

Gautam Varier
Aug 9, 2023
4 Min Read
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Credit: Fadeaway World

  • With the East trailing 151-149 in the closing stages, LeBron James passed up a potential game-winner twice
  • LeBron turned the ball over on the second occasion and the East went on to lose 152-149
  • Kobe Bryant and Carmelo Anthony seemed to call him out on the court for not shooting

LeBron James is one of the greatest players in NBA history, and many would argue he is simply the greatest. LeBron has an incredible resume with four titles, four Finals MVPs, and four MVPs, and he also became the all-time leading scorer in NBA history earlier this year.

James’ detractors, though, have always found ways to criticize him, and one of the common ones has been that LeBron shies away from taking the last shot. That was on full display at the 2012 All-Star Game, as James twice passed up a potential game-winner, which led to Kobe Bryant and Carmelo Anthony calling him out.

LeBron revealed afterward that Kobe was indeed telling him to let it fly, “Yeah, he (Bryant) was telling me to shoot it,” James said, via Yahoo Sports. “I wish I could have that one back.”

Kobe and Carmelo would have no doubt shot it, but that just wasn’t how LeBron was built. James has always been a willing passer, but in that situation, he should have shot it, as he himself admitted. Blake Griffin stole the ball when he passed it the second time, and the West went on to win 152-149.

While Michael Malone described the 2023 All-Star Game as the worst game of basketball ever played, the 2012 one wasn’t quite that bad. We saw some big performances from the big stars, and it went down to the wire.


Top Performers For The Eastern All-Stars:

LeBron James: 36 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists

Dwyane Wade: 24 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, 2 steals

Deron Williams: 20 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal

Carmelo Anthony: 19 points, 9 rebounds, 2 steals

Dwight Howard: 9 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block


Top Performers For The Western All-Stars:

Kevin Durant: 36 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals

Kobe Bryant: 27 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 2 steals

Blake Griffin: 22 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals

Russell Westbrook: 21 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals

Kevin Love: 17 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals

Kevin Durant would win All-Star Game MVP, while Kobe Bryant surpassed Michael Jordan to become the all-time leader for points in All-Star games that night. LeBron has since passed him and currently sits at the top.

While this sequence was some great ammunition for LeBron’s critics, he has actually been quite clutch during his career. James has made the most clutch shots in the last 30 seconds in the playoffs since 1997. LeBron has also made seven game-winning buzzer-beaters, as per Basketball Reference, with only Michael Jordan (9), Kobe Bryant (8), and Joe Johnson (8) hitting more.

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TAGGED:Carmelo AnthonyKobe BryantLeBron James
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ByGautam Varier
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Gautam Varier is a staff writer and columnist for Fadeaway World from Mumbai, India. He graduated from Symbiosis International University with a Master of Business specializing in Sports Management in 2020. This educational achievement enables Gautam to apply sophisticated analytical techniques to his incisive coverage of basketball, blending business acumen with sports knowledge.Before joining Fadeaway World in 2022, Gautam honed his journalistic skills at Sportskeeda and SportsKPI, where he covered a range of sports topics with an emphasis on basketball. His passion for the sport was ignited after witnessing the high-octane offense of the Steve Nash-led Phoenix Suns. Among the Suns, Shawn Marion stood out to Gautam as an all-time underrated NBA player. Marion’s versatility as a defender and his rebounding prowess, despite being just 6’7”, impressed Gautam immensely. He admired Marion’s finishing ability at the rim and his shooting, despite an unconventional jump shot, believing that Marion’s skill set would have been even more appreciated in today’s NBA.This transformative experience not only deepened his love for basketball but also shaped his approach to sports writing, enabling him to connect with readers through vivid storytelling and insightful analysis.
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