Over the last few weeks, LeBron James has repeatedly demonstrated just how much basketball he still has in him. On a recent episode of NBA Today on ESPN, Chiney Ogwumike heaped praise on the Lakers superstar for still being at the top of his game. She also unveiled what LeBron’s superpower is.
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Chiney trashed the criticism that often comes in LeBron’s way that he always tries to take the last shot for his own good. She said, “His ammo is making the right play and I do think he is faulted for making the right play at the expense of his own ego at certain times, but in reality this is why it shows that he can step up and do the right and it works for his team.”
She also believes that if LeBron wanted to take over games, he could do that with ease because of the talent and skill he has but he always prioritizes the greater good over individual accomplishments. She said,
“He can choose to be the most dominant player, he can choose to be the best player but he chooses not to because he understands the goal is to win and not necessarily for him always to be the winner, perceived as the winner. That is his superpower.”
[LeBron] understands that the goal is to win and not necessarily for him always to be the winner … that is his superpower." 💪 @chiney on how LeBron James has continued to stay dominant for Team USA 👏 pic.twitter.com/WkCb6geETO
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) July 29, 2024
The four-time NBA Champion can’t be praised enough for the way he brought everyone together for the Paris Olympics and then led the team from the front in the exhibition games while everyone else was trying to find their footing under the FIBA rules. In the last two exhibition games, LeBron saved Team USA from losses.
If it wasn’t for his fourth-quarter takeovers, his team would’ve lost on both occasions against South Sudan and Germany. The flag bearer for Team USA at the Olympics this year continued the same form in the first game against Serbia as well (110-84). However, it was Kevin Durant who won everyone over with his elite shooting showcase and went a perfect 5 for 5 from behind the arc.
‘King James’ also put up a dominant performance and collected 21 points, nine assists, and seven rebounds and was the second-highest scorer in the game. He is also claiming the all-time Top 10 leaderboards of three stats in the USA’s comfortable win over Serbia – games won, assists, and steals.
The Lakers star has now been part of 22 USA victories (sixth place tied with Rudy Fernandez and Pau Gasol). The nine assists in the game against Serbia pushed James’ career total to 97, moving him to sixth place from ninth. He also moved to third place (tied with Manu Ginobili and Rudy Fernandez) in the steals leaderboard. However, he is just one steal away from the second place, which he can soon climb up to even the first place with the upcoming games.
