LeBron James is arguably the most polarizing player in NBA history, and definitely in the last 10 years. Whether he’s playing the villain role with the Miami Heat, returning home and winning a historic championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers, or now being an ageless wonder for the Los Angeles Lakers, the opinion on the man is usually rooted on two things: love or hate.
One thing that isn’t up for debate, however, is basketball IQ. You can believe that he’s the GOAT, you can call him a diva, flopper, or whatever, but there’s no changing how high-level his basketball IQ is. He’s a prodigy of the sport, and even now as one of the elder veterans of the game, he’s basically a savant among other savants.
LA Clippers head coach Doc Rivers, a long-time competitor, has always given big respect to James’ deep knowledge for the game, and he shared as much in a recent Sports Illustrated piece:
“There’s a lot of people in the league with LeBron’s body… There’s no one in the league with his brain.”
Doc Rivers
Rivers, as you know, has had a front-row seat to what one LeBron James can do. They’ve faced each other in countless regular season games and four intense playoff series. A 23-year-old LeBron almost eliminated the star-studded, championship-winning 2008 Celtics as he scored 45 points in Game 7 of their conference finals match-up.
Then, in the 2012 East finals, when LeBron was with the Heat, he powered a comeback against the Celtics after trailing 3-2 in the series. I’m pretty sure you know about that classic Game 6 performance. It’s the angriest, most locked-in LeBron I’ve ever seen.
NBA Hall-of-Famer and current Lakers assistant coach Jason Kidd, whom LeBron also had a handful of battles with back in the day, believes The King can play in his 40s.
“[His IQ] to help him play until he’s 40… His IQ is always going to help him because he’s going to be able to take less steps, right? Instead of running a six-mile race, he can run a five-mile race just because of his IQ.”
Jason Kidd
Kidd knows a thing or two about playing effectively until you’re deep into your dog years. He played until he was 39 years old and suited up for 19 seasons. He still looked like a decent player when he retired. He was part of the Mavericks team that upset James’ Heat for the title in 2011.
The 35-year-old LeBron is averaging 25.7 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and a league-leading 10.6 assists per game on 49.8% shooting this season, and that’s on top of him seemingly coasting on certain games.
He even went into a different gear prior to the league’s coronavirus suspension. Over his last 10 games, he racked up 30.2 points, 8.6 boards, and 9.9 dimes while shooting over 54%. which includes back-to-back strong performances on the Milwaukee Bucks and LA Clippers.
LeBron co-headlines the Lakers charge alongside Anthony Davis. Their tandem has the Lake Show sitting atop the Western Conference with a 49-14 record.
