[Highlight] LeBron scores 56 points on the Raptors 21 years ago (March 20, 2005).
The beginning of Lebronto lol
I feel like anybody who grew up after the seven seconds or less Suns would have trouble understanding just how insane this is. Like if Kon Knueppel scored 56 points, that would be amazing, but at least 27 of those would probably be on open 3’s, in a game where his team scored 120.
The average team back then scored 97.2 points per game in 91 possessions (compared to 115.3 points per game in 99.3 possessions now), and that was up from 93 points per game in 90 possessions the year before. LeBron had just turned 20 a few months earlier.
He had 0 players on his team who you’d call a lob threat. He had 0 players on his team who you’d call a 3 point threat. Drew Gooden was somehow the 3rd best scorer on that team. Defenses could just constantly pack the paint, and there was no way to punish them.
I grew up in a league where starting small forwards could realistically look like Kendall Gill or Corliss Williamson or Austin Croshere. LeBron and T-Mac seemed like aliens.
I loved that the Pistons used to hold their opponents to 70 points at times back them, but I do not wish those times to come back.
Why? The dead ball era is my favourite on every level
I think rules swung way too much into hand checking and illegal defense, enabling teams to comfortably play 3 non shooters if necessary. Some of my favorite players ever played in that era though, even if people like Ben Wallace wouldn’t see the court at this time and age.
I’ll still admit that watching people like Iverson, Bryant or T-Mac navigating the rules at the time through pure grit was really satisfying.
Kobe out scoring the 60 win Mavs through 3 quarters (62 points for Kobe, 61 for the Mavs) will always be the most impressive scoring performance to me.
This was also the era where everyone played all 82 and averaged 40mpg. So nostalgic.
Same dude who just dropped a triple double last night and 30 points the night before at age 41. Lol. This man has really been in the league from 18-41 and is almost 100% playing another season because he is getting a retirement tour.
30 points on 91% shooting no less. Man is insane lmao
Why is he shooting like Steph but dunking like Shaq? Shits not fair
It’s always funny when people say Bron isn’t a shooter.
Zion is not a shooter.
You can’t shoot like this and say stupid shit like that. Yeah he’s not a sniper but he’s not a brick either.
EXACTLY. That narrative has always driven me nuts. I am from Cleveland and have watched him since 2004 and he always had a decent jumper when he was young…his shooting splits just weren’t great cause teams actually played defense in the 2000s.
His longevity is ridiculous
this video quality is ancient
He’s always hated them
There was so much bounce to his jump shot back then, by the time Miami era came, he didn’t shoot like this anymore. I’m sure the stats show he was more efficient but his shot looked more fluid here than Miami-current. He took the legs from under himself. Ik it’s natural age but idk, I feel he changed the life of his shot so much
He cleaned it up so much since this version. That right leg kick looked cool in this clip, but it’s a horrible habit that leads to inconsistency. He learned to set his feet consistently and became a better shooter.
Crazy to compare his game across eras. They’re almost entirely different players.
Who won the game?
Raps