[Scotto] Lakers coach JJ Redick on LeBron James: “Literally every single guy was going bahhh, bahhh (goat noises). It speaks to his greatness. To me, he’s had the greatest career of any NBA player. He’s one of, if not the greatest of all time.”
I doubt he retires without a tour, but if he did this year it’d be a fire way to go out.
Dragging an injured team past a roster full of athletic young guys at age 41. Just iconic, and symbolic for his career.
He timed his season pretty perfectly to be peaking for the playoffs. Incredible stuff. Too bad the team couldnt hold up healthwise. I think the Lakers were going to look like real contenders this postseason
He’s been doing that for almost a decade at this point tbf
Tbh I think that’s actually pretty common of GOATs across all sports as they get old. They’re so good that them “coasting” is still enough to be competitive against regular top players in the season so the can safely minimise injuries and exhaustion and be fresh for the final. Also, because they’ve been so good for so long, they will get more leeway for some dodgy midseason performance, which also enables their coasting.
Majority of players can’t afford to regularly coast, because then they’re gonna get dropped from the team, or not make it to finals at all because they and subsequently their team aren’t performing.
Yeah, looking at Djokovic in tennis, it is amazing what he has been able to achieve at such old age but he did the same thing… saving energy with weaker opponents and turning extra gear with real competition with Alcaraz and Sinner…
It is unfortunate his body is starting to give up and won’t be a real contender for Slam.
Still, he is able to beat Alcaraz or Sinner on occasion. The match few months back with Sinner was master class !
Yeah, agree. Its really hard to overemphasize the injury thing too. Injuries happen when athletes are going at 100%. The fact that Lebron could play most of his career not at his absolute highest gear has been a huge factor in his longevity and durability
Yeah and a big part of any GOATs making that status is that they’re (relatively) injury free. While obviously there’s a lot of contributing factors to that (genetics and luck being two big ones) I think just generally throughout their career the fact that they are just so good that they don’t need to play at 100% is underrated.
I’m much more of a soccer fan than basketball, and I think Messi and Ronaldo are both great examples. Football is more about big moments than basketball, and they just never needed as many big moments to make a difference as anyone else, because their big moments were just so much higher quality (in really generic terms). Their dribbles were more successful, their shots were more accurate and powerful, their assists were more precise, their decisions were more likely to be correct, and so on.
with or without bronny?
What’s wrong with a bench player like Bronny? Are all the players drafted in the same year as Bronny better?
No
TurningPointGuard type question
Lestorybookending
I need a tour. Ngl I used to be a LeBron hater but those days ended the day he decided to join the purple and gold
I feel like this is true of many LeBron haters due to his rising fame during Kobe’s peak. It’s kinda crazy how strong the narrative between the two was even though they never met in the playoffs.
Bingo
Tours are lame. He is definitely not going to have a tour where he’s going through the motions the entire year just to wave at people. That is not his style at all. Kobe may have needed that because he was hated for much of his career and he wanted to leave on a different vibe, but LeBron doesn’t need that psychologically. The dude is revered already. He’s on a tour whenever he leaves his house.
Beating the rockets one of the worst shooting teams in the nba is not a flex
It is when you’re 41 with the worst bench in the league while being underdogs in every game
Worst bench in the league have you seen the rockets bench
Who shit on your bed man
You make a fair point. Everybody was angling to play the Rockets before Luka and Reaves went down.
One of the greatest of all time you say? That’s quite bold, but I’ll allow it after how well he played in this series.
Glad someone finally started the goat conversation after all these years.
Yes. It’s year twenty-three. I think it’s time somebody compares LeBron to past greats. Like what if someone were to debate LeBron vs. say, Michael Jordon? That would be interesting.
Lebron vs MJ debates?
Imagine that
Luke Kennard was saying bahhh-urns
Imagine being a rookie like Dalton Knecht or Bronny and seeing 14 grown men, multi-millionaires and elite athletes screaming like livestock at a 41-year-old while your head coach just nods in approval. This is either the greatest locker room culture in history or a fever dream. No in-between.
(goat noises)
Redick is beside himself. Driving around downtown LA praising (thru goat noises) LeBron’s career
I’d definitely have him in my top 50 players of all time.
JJ could shoot, but you’re being ridiculous.
Barea? He’s easily top 4000 all time
He’s in my top 49
The guy can ball but he’s no Bob Cousy
A 41 years old lebron James year 23 into his career was the best player on the floor for this entire series playing against guys nearly half his age and with far more energy. In a must win game today he had 28 points 8 assists and 8 rebounds and was a +28 on the floor while playing defense as well.
Regardless of what happens against OKC this further adds to his legacy and adds legitimacy to his GOAT case.
Damn. Close to the elusive 27/7/7
28p/7r/8a
He’s literally playing with and against guys who are the same age as his son
Thiero, Smith Jr and Sheppard were all born in 2004 just several months earlier than Bronny
I think LeBron is the goat 6-0 doesn’t hold a candle to this longevity
I’m fine if a person’s GOAT pick is Jordan, but using 6-0 as the end-all argument is lazy when John Havlicek is 8-0.
He dragged the 2007 and 2018 squads to the Finals when they had no business being there. It’s wild to think his legacy would somehow look ‘better’ if he had just lost in the earlier rounds instead.
Won’t stand for Big Z and Sasha Pavlovic slander.
Big Z was in his like 14th professional season by then, he was ancient.
As time goes by and less stars getting 3-4 rings LeBron will be goat
Edit: In Jordan’s time it was normal too win 5-6 rings. But tbh after Kobe lakers no one has won has many rings other than Duncan and Curry
It was not normal, nor will it ever be. Both MJ and lebron did extraordinary things even among the great of greats. Just who you rank above the other is down to your personal preference.
I think he/she tries to say that it wasn’t something never seen before, which is true. Talent pool is much richer now. MJ would be one of the greatest today, but not the same single power that dominated the league.
It’s so wild how Lebron fans dismissed MJ winning it all while at the same time prop up Lebron going through the finals on a weak east.
MJ had to deal with the Larry Bird Celtics and Bad Boy Pistons while Lebron’s best opponent in 2007 and 2018 were an aging Pistons (who didn’t win even win the championship), and the baby Celtics, who wasn’t even fully healthy.
So they’ll say rings isn’t the end all or be all of all arguments while turning around and say just reaching the finals through weaker competition is far better accomplishments than two threepeats.
A feat that the Heatles, Durant-Curry Warriors couldn’t do. Only the Shaq-Kobe era have done it, it took two top 15 player to accomplish once what Jordan and Pippen did twice. Yet Jordan is punished for winning six times while Lebron is praised for reaching the finals 10 times.
Tell me you weren’t alive to see Jordan play without tellling me you weren’t alive to see Jordan play… pure comedy.
I saw him play live in the 96 finals. It was not pretty.
two three peats tho
AND all the extra accolades in less time
It’s so wild how Lebron fans argument for GOAT status is reaching the finals 10 times while dismissing Jordan’s two threepeats
Saying rings aren’t all that matters while at the same time saying Lebron reaching more finals should be an argument why he is above Jordan.
I don’t see this argument in other greats. No one puts Jerry West above Hakeem for winning one while reaching the finals more times for example.
🤫 stop with your logic.
thats a fair argument, but its not logic. words mean things, at least i hope they still do. not everything that sounds convincing to you is “logic”
The fuckery will continue
As someone who thought jabari smith, tari eason, and amen Thompson were the best wings in NBA history, the fact that LeBron dominated proved to me that he is in fact the goat.
Such a tough matchup. How can you match the athleticism and the size?
Was definitely tough to watch
I don’t disagree. LeBron of any age other than 18-19 has been better. But considering he was prepared to be the 2nd-3rd option going into the post-season, he executed quite well. I suppose you could say he maximized his role players given the varied performers across the series. His efficiency and production should be compared to the grittiness of the series as well.
This series was utter garbage, some of the worst basketball I’ve ever seen from Houston. And to think I was hyped to watch KD vs LeBron one last time, instead I got to see rui hachimura vs amen Thompson 👎
Yeah, it’s too bad KD got injured in practice leading into the series. He may have been able to reduce his regular season usage and minutes if VanVleet hadn’t have gone down. Obviously Luka would have completely transformed this series.
Why is this downvoted lmao. Everybody is disappointed with the rosters we just watched.
Look at the way Minnesota played without their top guys. Wasn’t nearly as gross to watch as these two teams. Good coaching and hustle from players who were waiting for their shot.
It’s all subjective man and I know for most of us it’s in good fun, but I hate that it always has to be some hot button issue.
Jordan, LeBron, or a handful of other guys throughout history have been unbelievably good at basketball. Stop ranking everything
Comparison….the thief of Joy
Nah man, comparison is soft. The real thief of joy is stress. Stress is the GOAT thief. Comparison can’t hold a candle to stress.
Joy is the thief of victory. If you had been focused on what you were trying to accomplish instead of enjoying yourself everything would’ve been okay.
Now hold up. If we’re consistent and contentious enough we could possibly make this comparison vs stress as the thief of joy debate as a tribalistic thing like everything else that surrounds us.
I assume we’re talking LeBron MJ and Eric Gordon?
I miss DLo. He started that goat noises in the locker room. 😭
Figures it was Dlo
And who started the term GOAT in the first place?
LL Cool J
I thought it was Muhammad Ali.
And who defeated LL Cool J in a rap battle?
Canibus.
Damn, I thought it was Wenyen Gabriel lmao
just wait till what he does to the Thunder
Clippers fan twerking for Lakers fans?
Or just baiting OKC fans. Congrats
Nah, they shaking ass for LeBron
Most educated and high social awareness state 49 resident
Clippers fans don’t root for the Lakers.
Nothing wrong with glazing the GOAT. Goes across fandoms. We’re lucky to watch something special.
That’s cool and all, just make sure that Clippers pick is top 4 this year and I’ll forgive you!
buddy dont do this to yourself you already look pathetic
Its too late. Somehow they look more pathetic than my team.
Make it out the first round before calling someone pathetic
You guys really feel so entitled huh, not even a dynasty yet but act like already. Keep enjoying your moments
That’s an excellent way to put it.
Nobody was better than young Jordan, nobody.
And nobody can do what LeBron James has done. Nobody.
Deh. Uhfu u be v. J s to
You said it, man
Kind of want to see how long he can stay relevant in the league even as a role player at the bottom for the roster. 45? 50?
If 41 LeBron leads Lakers to a title this year, is he the GOAT?
Relax JJ your about to be smashed by Okc
He’s not just because he won a first round game against a team missing its two best players. Man we have set the bar low.
Nope
He’s great but tbh is series against the rockets hasn’t changed anything about that. Let’s see the spurs and the thunder. The greatest players beat the greatest teams.
He already beat the 73-win warriors team lol. If they beat OKC there should genuinely be an investigation into whether the series was rigged.
Bro he’s 41, remind me again how other players fared at the same age when trying to lead a team
He literally has the greatest championship of the modern era. Fucking nephews.
Nope thats Dirks Mavs against prime Lebron
Did this dumbass forget about 2016 😂😂 Jordan fans are all showing their dementia it seems no wonder everyone laughs at them
not the greatest
sad goat noises
Never seen a coach gargle before
Cmon bro Darko is literally sucking on Scottie Barnes talking about some next face of the league every other night
Darko is just speaking the truth bro.
If you watched Scottie play you would know
He’s not even top 5 player his age and below lol.
What are you talking about bro?
🤣🤣🤣
Go learn ball bro
It’s gotta be a bit weird to be coaching a guy who got all-NBA 1st team the year you were drafted and then got it again for the 13th time the year before you retired (only got all-nba 2nd team the year he actually retired though, the bum)
Straight up that’s the only plausible explanation for forgetting about the existence of Michael Jordan and Bill Russell.
But this is the guy who said the greats played against plumbers lmao
Hes not even the goat of his era
This is the moment in real life conversations where I start nodding along and ask the person leading questions just so I can find out how batshit fucking insane their opinions really are
Sometimes people just be forgetting what the AT of GOAT stands for. fym goat of his era.
They’re just talking about actual goats. Personally I think the largest Billy goat gruff was the best of Lebron’s era
Ok. Ill humor you. Who is then?
He’s very incorrectly going to say Curry.