The narrative about LeBron James not stepping up when needed has been around for quite some time. Despite being in the NBA for almost 20 years, and winning multiple NBA championships, James’ clutchness is often called into question.
James is by no means an excellent shooter. The strongest aspect of his game has almost always been his passing. But James has shouldered the responsibility of taking shots to win games.
And despite what his critics would suggest, LeBron makes clutch shots more often than he misses them.
The argument that James is not a player who can close out a game is one of many used against him to discredit his position in the debate for the greatest player of all time.
This argument came up in the early part of LeBron’s career, especially after his first season in Miami. During the 2011 NBA Finals, James collapsed and put on a bad performance as the Heat were defeated by Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks.
James had a very poor showing against Dallas. But the next year, he exorcised his demons by winning an NBA championship. Since then, James has gone on to prove that 2011 was an outlier.
And while he is no longer the explosive athlete that he once was, James still knows how to make an impact and get the win.
This is exactly what happened when the Cavs went to Madison Square Garden to take on the Knicks.
In a game that proved to be surprisingly tough, the Knicks were giving the Cavs a run for their money. But LeBron decided to shut down the game in 4th quarter.
James dished out several passes to teammates like Dwyane Wade, Kyle Korver, and JR Smith, who made big shots. James made his own three to close the game, with that being the only shot he took.
But there are still those who question the mettle of the King. James has continued to play at the highest level late into his career.
