This season, Lebron James is about to enter his 23rd season, a feat never before achieved by any NBA player. Before that, both he and Vince Carter held the record, playing for 22 seasons.
But not so fast, as King James is reportedly suffering from a right-side sciatica injury and is expected to miss the opener and probably a few more games as he has chosen to be more conservative in his approach.
LONGEVITY. Regardless of where you stand in the GOAT conversation, there is no argument that Lebron is right smack dab in it. Personally, I think Michael Jordan is the undisputed GOAT, but it all depends on one’s metric.
Lebron’s injury is — I dare say, unfortunately a harbinger of more things to come. He will be 41 in December and as much as Lebron has delayed the inevitable, Father Time is undefeated.
Usually, it starts somewhere. As you start to heal up, sooner or later another physical ailment will happen. Then an athlete notices, he can’t do certain things as easily as before. A prime example would be Jordan. As he entered his 30’s he didn’t dunk as often anymore and evolved into a more complete player.
In Bron’s case, his game relies so much on his athleticism and explosiveness, two things that irrevocably degrade over time.
Whatever the case and whenever it will happen, Lebron has nothing else to prove and is already ‘goated”. Let’s enjoy him while he can still do it, and I for one will be cheering him as he goes on to try and win another title, regardless of all the drama he creates.
DALLAS. One team that is shaping up to be the dark horse to win it all this season is the Dallas Mavericks.
To think that they were in the doldrums after they lost Luka Doncic less than a year ago, and to suddenly become one of the title favorites is nothing short of incredible.
And one primary reason for that is their sensational rookie Cooper Flagg. He has shown glimpses of his talent during the pre-season games and this kid can truly do it all.
In fact, I don’t understand the skepticism of some pundits about his game. I just don’t see any holes.
The fact that he will be playing alongside NBA champions like Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson and Anthony Davis, only creates more upside.
VERBATIM. “My team told me Tank is looking dangerous in camp based on intel. Shiver me timbers. 4 weeks. Miami.” - Jake Paul on X.
LAST ROUND. It’s on one of my dearest friends, Atty Alan F. Siu, who celebrates his birthday this week. Cheers!