Why LeBron James Shouldn’t Participate in the 2012 NBA Slam Dunk Contest
There has recently been speculation about LeBron James “taking his talents” to All-Star Weekend 2012 and competing in the annual Slam Dunk contest.
James has certainly entertained the possibility of competing before, and while many fans would love to see him participate, I think that it would be a bad idea.
LeBron is unquestionably one of the most gifted athletes the NBA has ever seen. His combination of size, strength and leaping ability is almost unprecedented. Because of these unbelievable gifts, you would assume that James is the perfect candidate for the dunk contest.
And you would be right.
I can’t deny that watching LeBron throw it down would be anything short of spectacular. Competitions like this were made for guys like James.
However, no matter how impressive he could potentially be, he’ll never live up to the massive expectations that are in place.
Every couple of years in the dunk contest, the bar is raised just a little bit higher. Vince Carter set the standard in 2000 with the most impressive performance ever. A few years later, Jason Richardson put his extraordinary athletic ability on display with several jaw-dropping dunks. Dwight Howard has since taken the contest to the next level by showing off his creativity and enthusiasm.
Last year, Blake Griffin won one of the most memorable competitions in recent memory. All four contestants came prepared and put on an incredibly entertaining show for the fans.
Unfortunately for LeBron, that means that the standard is at an all-time high. When you consider that everything he does is heavily scrutinized, it becomes clear that there is an enormous amount of pressure on him to perform.
Even if he falls just short of the unrealistic expectations, fans will walk away disappointed. This is LeBron James we’re talking about. Because we expect the world from him, we unfairly hold him to different standards.
This brings me to my next point. If LeBron realizes that he needs to be spectacular to impress, he may try to push himself and attempt something that has never been done before. Risking an injury for a largely insignificant contest just seems unnecessary, especially considering the grueling season that we have on our hands.
Even for the athletes participating in the events, the All-Star break traditionally acts as a period of rest and recovery for NBA players. LeBron should take full advantage of that break and finish the regular season with momentum.
Although it’s highly unlikely that he would hurt himself, I still don’t think it’s worth it. What he could potentially lose far outweighs what he has to gain.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, winning a dunk contest shouldn’t be LeBron’s main priority this year. In fact, I don’t even think he should be considering it.
After his disappointing performance in last year’s Finals series, James should be primarily focused on redeeming himself by winning his first championship ring. The dunk contest is merely a distraction for LeBron James at this point in his career. Anything less than a title in Miami this year will be seen as a failure.
Picturing the best player in the world flying through the air on All-Star Weekend is a tantalizing thought. But for LeBron James and his Miami Heat, loftier goals must be achieved. It’s time for the King to decide. Does he want to be remembered as an entertainer or as a champion?
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Charles Barkley Video: Watch Chuck Mock LeBron James’ Receding Hairline
He does his best to hide it, but LeBron James isn’t fooling anybody with the headband trick. His hairline isn’t receding. The blasted thing is retreating.
Leave it to Charles Barkley to be honest about it.
On Thursday night, the TNT crew got Chuck to wear a headband the way LeBron would wear it. When Chuck put it on and moved the front part to the middle of his head, hilarity ensued.
If you missed it, I implore you to watch it. It’s one of the funnier things you’ll see today.
Yes, it’s mean to make a mockery of LeBron’s hairline. It’s not like he can control it, after all. It’s not his fault his hairline isn’t as close to the earth as it once was.
At the same time, LeBron is mocking himself with the whole headband thing. He’s not wearing his like you’re supposed to wear a headband. He’s wearing it more like a halo. Or, in keeping with the King James thing, a crown.
Chuck and the rest of the TNT crew have a good solution to King James’ problem. Instead of covering up his hair loss, he should embrace it by going bald.
Hey, why not? All the best players are or once were bald. Michael Jordan had hair at the start of his career, but he eventually went bald. The same is true of Kobe Bryant, Shaq and Chuck himself.
There’s no shame in going bald, LeBron. It will be weird not having hair, but you’ll look a lot better and you won’t lose any of your trademark swagger.
The time for LeBron to go bald is now. If he puts it off for much longer, it actually will be shameful when he finally does.
Either that or he could pursue the Wayne Rooney hair replacement method.
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Howard, James, Wade named All-Star starters
Dwight Howard is one popular guy. Not only among those who want to trade for him, but among fans.The Magic center finished as the leading overall vote-getter in NBA All-Star returns, and will start for the East in the Feb. 26 All-Star Game in Orlando. While Howard, who has asked be traded, could be dealt before the March 15 trade deadline, it’s highly unlikely he would be shipped out before the Magic plays host to Orlando’s second All-Star Game.With the starting lineups having been announced Thursday, joining Howard on the East will be Miami teammates LeBron James, first in the voting at forward, and Dwyane Wade, second among guards. It will mark the eighth straight All-Star appearances for both James and Wade while it’s the sixth consecutive one for Howard.Other East starters will be New York forward Carmelo Anthony and Chicago guard Derrick Rose.For the West, the leading vote-getter was Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant. Other starters are Lakers center Andrew Bynum, Oklahoma City forward Kevin Durant, Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin and Clippers guard Chris Paul.The Heat, Lakers and Clippers each will have two All-Star starters at Amway Arena. Orlando’s only previous All-Star Game was in 1992 at Orlando Arena.Reserves will be announced next Thursday. Miami forward Chris Bosh looks to be a shoo-in to be named to his seventh straight All-Star Game.Chris Tomasson can be reached at christomasson@hotmail.com or on Twitter @christomasson.
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LeBron James: 5 Reasons the Miami Heat Star Must Enter NBA Slam Dunk Contest
Given the exploits in the air we witnessed from LeBron James and Blake Griffin this week, it’s almost fitting that the NBA All-Star Game is only weeks away.
That gets us thinking about this year’s Slam Dunk Contest and why both guys should be in it, especially James.
It also has James thinking about it as well as he hasn’t closed the door on the possibility entirely.
Of course we’ve heard this from LeBron before. In 2009, James vowed to compete in the 2010 contest, then quietly backed out.
This is likely a bad year for the dunk contest with the compressed season. It takes a lot of planning and preparation to compete these days and it’s doubtful James will get much time to do so.
But he should do it anyway, and here’s a few reasons why.
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LeBron James and 4 NBA Players That Must Be More Aggressive in Fourth Quarter
When you sign a big contract you’re expected to step up when the game is important and play better. As the expression goes, “big time players make big time plays.”
Some players are living up to big contracts. The bigger the moments get, the bigger their play gets. Other players do various degrees of a disappearing act when the moment gets huge.
Here are four players who are coming up short when they should be coming up big.
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LeBron James: Heat Star Would Repair Tarnished Image with Slam Dunk Contest
LeBron James needs to compete in the 2012 NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Competition to repair his tattered image.
He’s become one of the most hated figures in all of sports, and I wouldn’t hesitate to call him one of the most selfish.
LeBron seemingly only cares about one thing—himself—and even though that is his right as a person, I firmly believe he needs to do something for the fans of the NBA.
He needs to compete in the Slam Dunk competition and give the fans that he’s turned off something to cheer about.
He needs this to start resurrecting his image.
There’s no other reason for him to be in it, but this one is important enough.
He doesn’t have anything to prove—besides winning a championship or four or five—as we all know that he’s one of the most ferocious dunkers in the league. He has an amazing blend of speed, power and athleticism that makes him absolutely stunning above the rim.
The Slam Dunk Competition won’t do anything to validate or invalidate that.
While he doesn’t have anything to prove, he does have a lot to lose.
The pressure was on him to win a championship with the Miami Heat and the Big Three last season, and it will continue to increase every year that goes by without an NBA championship ring on his finger.
Spending time practicing for and competing in the dunk competition is just a waste of energy that quite frankly, very few players have in this lockout shortened yet intensified season.
That’s precious energy wasted and precious time spent that could be used to rest. This is not even factoring in a potential injury, which would be devastating.
At least on paper it would seem like the risk wouldn’t be worth the reward for James, and according to quotes recorded by Ethan J. Skolnick, of The Palm Beach Post, James has played it safe in the past:
“I have thought about it before and a few times in the past I kind of had an ankle injury that kind of kept me out of it and a couple of times I was just like, ‘You know what, I’m going to go in here and rest my legs for this weekend and then get back to the regular season,” James said. “But, I mean, they say a lot of the greats have done it and I’ve watched it over the years.”
LeBron needs to stop thinking about himself and finally give fans of the NBA a reason to cheer for him again.
He’s a tremendous player, there’s no doubt about it, and he has all the intangibles to go down as an all-time great. There should be no reason to dislike a player that’s as good as he is, except when he is beating your team.
LeBron has given us far too many reasons though.
Whether it’s the way he handled the city of Cleveland with his infamous hour long “The Decision” free agency special or his selfish attitude and what looks like a desire to play the bad guy—there are plenty of reasons to hate LeBron James.
Perhaps he doesn’t care, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case. If there is a part of him that wants to be the good guy in the NBA, though, going out and putting on a show for the fans—knowing all he has to lose—would be a great way to start that process.
He would be providing entertainment, fun, and undoubtedly some very spectacular and perhaps historic dunks.
It would be a small gesture, but it would be a way to give back to the NBA and whatever faithful fan base it has left.
For once, maybe LeBron could prove to the fans that he’s not above them. I know that he does charity work and is active in the community, but I’m looking at this from a basketball standpoint.
For once, maybe King James can step down from his throne and show us that it’s not all about him.
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Bucks beat Heat again despite James’ 40 (AP)
Brandon Jennings scored 31 points, including three 3-pointers in a critical stretch of the fourth quarter, and Milwaukee beat Miami 105-97 on Wednesday night for the Bucks’ second win over the Heat this season. Jennings also had eight assists while Drew Gooden added 17 points and nine rebounds for the Bucks, who have won three straight.
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LeBron James vs. Blake Griffin: Whose Dunk Was Better?
Poor John Lucas III.
While he did have the best seat in the house to watch LeBron’s monstrous dunk, he didn’t get the chance because he was looking down as James sailed over him.
Also, poor Kendrick Perkins.
He thought it would be a smart idea to step in front of the 2011 Slam Dunk Competition winner and attempt to block his route to the basket.
Very bad choice.
Two men, two very good dunks. But which one was better?
Was the fact that James sailed over the 5’11” Lucas with barely any effort, evidence that this was the better of the two? Or was is possibly the way Blake completely ignored the laws of gravity (and Perkins) to ferociously slam down the dunk?
After looking over the tapes, I’ve come to a conclusion. Take a look, and decide for yourself.
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Miami Heat: Only Thing Standing Between LeBron James & His First Ring Is Himself
All LeBron James has done this year is prove that he is, hands down, the most dominant and the most complete player in the NBA today.
Throughout the Heat’s first 18 games, LeBron has averaged 29.5 points, 8.2 rebounds, 7.0 assists, 1.8 steals and 0.8 blocks per game, with a league-leading PER of 33.05.
In addition to that incredible production, LeBron is shooting a career high from the field with a 54.7 field goal percentage and shooting 40 percent from beyond the arc.
LeBron is playing at the most efficient level in his nine-year career, which has helped the Heat earn the Eastern Conference’s best overall record at 15-6.
Say what you want about LeBron’s ability to show up in the clutch, but there is absolutely no doubting his dominant play this season is the main reason why the Heat are considered the best team in the Eastern Conference.
While LeBron is having one of the best years of his NBA career, there is still one thing that he’s missing. One thing that has eluded him his an entire career thus far. That one thing is an NBA Championship ring.
LeBron’s inability to win a championship in Cleveland could be chalked up to the lack of talent the Cavaliers had, and his failure last year in the NBA Finals could blamed on a lack of team chemistry in the Heatles’ first year.
The only excuse LeBron has this year, if he doesn’t hoist the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy come June, is the man looking back at him when he looks in the mirror.
There isn’t another player in the NBA like LeBron James.
He’s a freakish athlete, measuring 6’8”, 260 pounds, while still being able to run the floor with the speed, agility and awareness of a 185-pound point guard, and he’s hands down the most complete player in the league, averaging the highest points/rebounds/assists combo.
With LeBron’s rare combination of size, intelligence and efficiency, there aren’t many players in the NBA that can compete on his level, and there aren’t many players that can stop him from winning the first NBA title of his career—aside from himself.
The biggest weakness that exists within LeBron’s game isn’t something tangible, it’s the mentality, rooted in a lack of confidence, that persists in the way he approaches the final minutes of games. What’s kept LeBron from winning his first ring is just that, a lack of confidence in himself and his ability to finish and close out games in the clutch.
It’s not that LeBron is incapable of hitting big shots, sinking late-game free throws and being the closer the Heat need him to be.
The problem is that while LeBron undoubtedly has the skill, ability and physicality to take over late in games, he lacks the confidence that it takes to do so, and that will ultimately be the only thing that ever keeps him from winning an NBA championship.
LeBron seems to be establishing confidence in himself this year more than other, as evidenced by the fact he controlled the ball on the Heat’s final two possessions against the Bulls in this past Sunday’s epic showdown.
While LeBron missed his two final jump shots and clanked two clutch free throws, the fact he held the ball and at least took those shots, instead of standing in the corner like he’s done the past few years of his career, shows progression in his belief himself as the leader of the Miami Heat.
The Miami Heat don’t necessarily need LeBron to be the leader in South Beach, with Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade being more than capable of playing that role. But LeBron undoubtedly needs to be the guy in Miami, because when LeBron feels he is the focal point of the team he plays in a more dominant, consistent and confident way.
That is why he led the Heat to an 7-1 record without Wade in the lineup, averaging 29.4 PPG and 7.8 APG, with an impressive field goal percentage of 52.7.
The kind of intensity and confidence that existed within LeBron’s game while Wade was out is something LeBron must integrate into the way he plays night in and night out.
If LeBron can manage to do that, there’s no one that can keep him from winning his first ring in 2012.
Once LeBron realizes there’s no one in the NBA that can keep him from the 2012 NBA title other than himself, LeBron will truly become unstoppable, which will be an absolutely frightening reality for the 29 other teams in the NBA.
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Miami Heat’s LeBron James Clear Front-Runner for MVP After Dismantling Bulls?
Sunday’s showdown of the Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls wasn’t just a statement game for Miami, it was LeBron James shouting out a resounding declaration that he is the front-runner for this year’s NBA MVP award.
A two-time MVP winner, James destroyed the Bulls’ elite defense with 35 points on 12-of-23 shooting with 11 rebounds to propel the Heat to a 97-93 win. Chicago gives up 87 points a game, but King James scored almost at will with his superior speed, positioning and cutting abilities.
James not only was the most impressive player on the court, but he outperformed reigning MVP Derrick Rose convincingly. While Rose had 34 points and six rebounds and assists, the Bulls’ superstar shot 11-of-28 from the field while missing two free throws and the game-winning bucket in the final seconds.
King James made sure his presence was felt immediately, as he bolted to a quick 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the first quarter. Playing efficiently in an up-tempo offense, James had two alley-oop slams from Dwyane Wade, including soaring over Bulls backup John Lucas III for this posterizing dunk.
Not only did LBJ score, but he also dished out five assists, adding fluid ball movement to the Heat’s attack. For example, LeBron led a two-on-one fast break against Rose and alley-ooped to Wade for a thunderous slam.
Another demonstration of James’ hardwood skills came when Heat coach Erik Spoelstra went with a small lineup with LBJ at the 4-position. James utilized his speed and driving abilities to overwhelm Bulls power forward Taj Gibson, who is a solid defender. Spoelstra should think about having James play more in the 4-spot to exploit mismatches.Defensively, James helped hold Bulls small forward Ronnie Brewer to 10 points. His top defensive play consisted of authoritatively blocking a Rose fourth-quarter shot across the court.
Arguably James’ top performance this season, the King jumped ahead of Rose, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant in the MVP race.
Bryant is having a great year by scoring 30 points, 5.8 rebounds, 5.8 assists on 45.5 percent shooting with a torn ligament in his wrist. A point against Bryant’s candidacy is the Lakers‘ poor start.
Durant is leading the Oklahoma City Thunder to the NBA’s best record with 26.3 points per game, but James is a better passer and defender.
Rose has become a better facilitator and a more efficient shooter, but he has missed some time with turf toe while scoring less than last season (21.9 points opposed to 25.0).
James is not only having a monstrous season, but the NBA’s top talent is putting up better numbers than his two MVP years.
2008-09 28.4 points 7.6 rebounds 7.3 assists 1.7 steals 48.9 percent shooting 31.70 efficiency
2009-10 29.7 points 7.3 rebounds 8.6 assists 1.6 steals 50.3 percent shooting 31.10 efficiency
2011-12 29.2 points 8.0 rebounds 7.1 assists 1.9 steals 54.9 percent shooting 33.45 efficiency
Improving his post-up game with Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon during the offseason, James is the NBA’s third-most efficient shooter, which is incredible for a small forward making over 19 attempts per game.
Another reason why James should win the MVP is his play when Wade has been injured. LeBron has led the Heat to a 7-1 record while averaging 29.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, 7.8 assists, 2.1 steals on 45.7 percent shooting.
Schooling Rose and the Bulls’ stellar defense not only reaffirmed King James as the NBA’s premier player, but also foreshadows James reclaiming his MVP Award at season’s end.
Bob Bajek is an NBA Featured Columnist. He is also a freelance reporter and can be followed at Patch.com and Twitter.
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