Even at 41 years old, LeBron James is a level above his peers.
While many have already chalked up LeBron to a shell of his former self, NBA legend Robert Horry (7x champion) says that he’s still better than the vast majority of players. In fact, even now, Horry says that he’s just as dangerous as someone like Luka Doncic, even if he can’t score with the same effectiveness.
“He’s such a dynamic scorer and great passer,” said Horr after Friday’s game. “I’m not going to say he’s as great at getting his shot off as Luka is, but he’s just as dangerous. I think sometimes we look at his age and think he doesn’t have it. He still got it. Even at this age, he’s still better than 95% of the league.”
After 22 seasons in the NBA, LeBron James should be at the point where he’s struggling to keep up on the court. That’s what happened with countless others before, and it will come for him eventually as well. Yet, somehow, he’s managed to stave off father time by maintaining his elite playing status well into his 40s. Thanks to his cerebral mastery of the sport, he’s been able to adapt and adjust his game to stay effective and impactful on the floor. The question is, how high does he rank compared to the best of the best?
With roughly 450 players in the NBA, Horry’s take is that LeBron ranks among the top 25, a high but not unfitting placement for LeBron. While he’s clearly no longer the best in the league, he’s still good enough to impact the game in all the right ways, and we’ve seen that over the last two games, as he’s led the Lakers to back-to-back victories.
Even before the injuries, however, LeBron was more than holding his own with averages of 21.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 7.2 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game on 51.7% shooting and 32.1% shooting from three. Since missing the first quarter of the season due to sciatica, he’s been a steady hand for the Lakers and a critical leader for them on and off the court.
Unlike Luka and Reaves, the biggest thing with LeBron is not his scoring. Rather, it’s the way he runs the offense. As a brilliant strategist with a speedy reaction time, he’s able to outplay everyone due to his ability to make reads and hit teammates with accurate passes. Against the Suns on Friday, he put up a team-high 12 assists in 32 minutes, leading Los Angeles to a blowout victory.
Ultimately, with LeBron, the Lakers at least have a fighting chance, but their goal is not to win a series right now. All they want to do is survive long enough to let Reaves and Doncic return, but it’s much easier said than done. Depending on how the seeding plays out, they are facing a first-round matchup against either the Timberwolves or Rockets in the West, and that will dramatically influence how far they are able to go.
Either way, LeBron James is the one who is making all of this possible. If not for his steady hand, the Lakers wouldn’t have any shot right now, and it speaks volumes about his impact as a leader and athlete. Whether or not he returns to the Lakers this summer remains to be seen, but he has more than shown that he still belongs in the NBA. In fact, at this rate, he may be able to go until he’s 45.
