US Presswire-Steven Mitchell
LeBron James does not have many disabilities on the basketball court.
He is a gifted scorer, passer, defender, rebounder, and has great athleticism. He is able to play every position on the floor and can defend the most elite players at every position. That is what separates him from the pact.
He defines versatility.
But there are areas that he must improve on.
Most importantly is his shooting form. Although he did make some big shots this past postseason, James is still a very inconsistent three point shooter and free throw shooter. NBA legend Rick Barry has called out James and his coaches for his inability in this area.
“His shot, first and foremost, because I think that’s where it all comes down to. If you don’t have confidence in your shot, it destroys the rest of your game,” Barry said.
James needs to continue to improve on his free throw shooting because it will make him that much harder to defend. Teams often prefer to send him to the free throw line because he often has struggled from the line. James shoots 74.6 percent from the free throw line for his career. For a player of his caliber that is a very low percentage and for a player who gets there so often it shows how many points James leaves at the line. When he can master his free throws and shoot at least 80 percent from the line consistently through an entire regular season and postseason, he just might become the second best basketball player of all time.
The other area that James must improve on is his rotating defense around the perimeter. James sometimes roams the floor for the Miami Heat and is often torched by wide open shooters who makes shots he is too late to contest. As foolish as it may sound James is poor at contesting jump shots and that is something that he has to improve himself. Although the Heat try to keep teams from getting to the paint, they as a team sometimes defend the three point line poorly and a three point shot is always worth more points than a layup. James needs to have stronger and more complete close outs and then maybe he’ll be considered for a Defensive Player of the Year award.
If there were two things a person could advise James to do this summer, it would be to shoot with Ray Allen on a weekly basis and spend another week with Hakeem Olajuwon improving on his post moves. Working with these two legends would strengthen James in areas that he has managed to still be successful in without actually shooting or playing in the post effectively.
James is the best all-around player in the world but if he can become a better free throw shooter, help defender, and improve his post game, James can become the best all-around player the world has seen since Michael Jordan.
