Throughout his career, Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James has possessed an extraordinary all-around game, with his playmaking skills making him one of the most talented players in NBA history. But his current performance this season may be the purest expression of his skillset that we’ve ever seen as he continues to challenge the limits of greatness in season No. 17.
Often, the versatility of LeBron’s skills has had to be placed in the background for more practical reasons. He’s had to take on a big chunk of the scoring load several times throughout his career, with his rookie season being the only time he didn’t average 25 or more points a game.
This season is different, though. For once, he’s not leading his team in scoring, though he is second behind Anthony Davis. James is averaging a career-high 10.8 assists per game and is the league’s leader in assists. If he keeps this pace, he will lead the NBA in assists for the first time in his storied career.
A player that’s wowed audiences for almost two decades, James is using his skill set in perhaps the purest way he ever has in his NBA career this season with the Lakers. He’s been playing point guard, although one could argue James has been a “point guard” his whole career. Never one to tout himself as a “scorer,” even as one of the most prolific in NBA history, James has been allowed to play basketball in a style that suits his preferences this year.
A player that’s been compared to Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson, James’ stands alone, with his unique style of play never being more apparent than this season. A big part of that is because he has the perfect pick-and-roll partner in Davis. The duo has run the action beautifully this season, with Davis scoring 4.1 points a game as a roll man, per NBA.com.
This duo is something else. pic.twitter.com/TqWFShYheH
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) December 9, 2019
Davis has already solidified himself as one of the most talented teammates James has played with. He’s up there with Dwyane Wade and Kyrie Irving. Davis’ game complements James’ skill set well, with his ability to score in multiple ways, inside and outside. Davis has won Player of the Week twice this season for the Lakers and is coming off back-to-back games of 39 and 50 points.
Davis has allowed LeBron’s playmaking to flourish. Per NBA.com, the assist points created tallies the number of points a player or team makes through assists. Assist points created began being recorded in 2013-14, and since then James has ranked in the top 10 of the category six times, including this season. This season, James leads the league in assist points created (27.1). He’s also doing this while averaging a career-low 34.4 minutes per game.
Whether it’s seeing an open driving lane or finding an open teammate on the fastbreak, James can usually make any play he wants. In the video below, James floated a pass to Davis, who was running up the floor. Possessing great court vision is an important part of being a good passer, and James has some of the best court vision ever. Likely the best ever.
King Vision 🥽
(📺: @SpectrumSN) pic.twitter.com/qnlreypusO
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) December 9, 2019
Davis’ quality play has helped James immensely. In addition, though, James is arguably playing with one of the best-supporting casts he’s ever had in his career in terms of spacing. With shooters such as Danny Green and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, this roster is simply built for James to succeed at the highest level. Green and Caldwell-Pope are both shooting at least 38% from the 3-point line. In Cleveland and in Miami, shooting around LeBron meant great things and this season has been no different.
He also has some help handling the ball. Alex Caruso and Rajon Rondo have come off the bench to share ball-handling and facilitating duties, giving James a break so he doesn’t have to get his minutes too high. Rondo is second in assists on the team behind James, and Caruso ranks fourth.
Dwight Howard has also been a key player for the Lakers’ top-tier defense, and he’s rebounded the ball well, too. He has a 102.1 defensive rating, and he ranks second on the team in rebounds (7.0). Davis has been great defensively as well, leading the team in blocks (2.7). Having Davis and Howard as safety blankets has also allowed LeBron to take more risks, helping the Lakers be one of the best teams in the league in forcing turnovers.
James can also still score at a high level too, but he hasn’t been asked to do it as much this season. He’s posted eight games of 30-plus points this season, with a season-high 39 coming during overtime in a win against the Dallas Mavericks on Nov. 1.
A TRIPLE-DOUBLE DUEL IN DALLAS!@KingJames: 39 PTS, 12 REB, 16 AST@luka7doncic: 31 PTS, 13 REB, 15 AST#LakeShow #MFFL pic.twitter.com/gLGztikzzq
— NBA (@NBA) November 2, 2019
And defensively, he’s had a resurgence as well. He’s been playing passing lanes, positioning himself for steals. James is averaging 1.3 steals, tied for second on the Lakers with Green. He’s been able to play the free safety position on defense while being the quarterback of the offense.
With all these contributions from teammates, James doesn’t have to be concerned about handling the ball, scoring, making plays and playing defense.
And because of that, fans have gotten to see James in perhaps his purest form.
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