Bump. Bump. Spin. Swish.
LeBron James’ post-up game has an unmistakable, entirely predictable rhythm. So it seems incredible that after more than a decade, almost no one in the NBA has been able to stop it.
But the moves pace out like clockwork: James uses his 6-foot-9, 250-pound bulk to give his defender two bumps with his left hip. They expect it, James told Southern California News Group in an exclusive interview, which makes it all the more devastating when he spins back to his right to launch a fadeaway shot in their faces.
“There’s nothing you can do,” James told SCNG. “Most guys, especially when I’m in the post, they know they’re gonna get a little contact, they’re gonna take the first two hits. And then after that, I can escape. I can escape with that shot. It’s an unguardable shot.”
For a player who has averaged more than 27 points per game for his career, good for the fifth-highest average in NBA history, many coaches preface any perspective about James’ chase of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s hallowed career scoring record by saying James isn’t “a natural scorer.” It reflects how he first gained notoriety, as a pass-first forward in the mold of Magic Johnson who could punish teams at the rim with his otherworldly athleticism but was always looking for someone else’s open shot.
A reporter posed that thought to Lakers coach Darvin Ham recently, who snapped back playfully: “Who said that?”
“It’s funny, people say he’s not a scorer,” Ham retorted. “He’s an elite-level scorer, and hopefully that will sink in once he eclipses that record.”
The more nuanced truth is that both sentiments are accurate: James was not a born bucket-getter, but through years of effort and dedication molded himself into one.
Nothing exemplifies that like his post-up turnaround fadeaway jumper between about 15 from the hoop – a move Philadelphia coach and longtime LeBron foe Doc Rivers was quick to point out as James’ signature shot in…
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