The name, likeness and likeness of LeBron James adorn the walls outside the Miami Heat locker room.
When Gabe Vincent was a member of the organization, every day for the past four seasons, when he walked to the field for a home game or climbed the stairs to the practice facility, he had no choice but to Can see dozens of photos of James in the hallway.
There are also photos of other Heat superstars from Miami’s three championships, but none of these players are in the NBA anymore. Still, James is — and he’s still great, 10 years after leading Miami to its last championship.
This summer, Vincent signed a three-year, $33 million contract with the Los Angeles Lakers that brought him back to Southern California, where he grew up. But he also put him on the same team as a player who will be immortalized in the building that left Vincent in Miami.
“It’s hard to talk about the NBA without mentioning his name,” Vincent said recently after a Lakers practice when asked what it was like to be teammates with LeBron. “Whether it’s with the Heat or in Charlotte, LeBron’s name is always mentioned.”
Vincent isn’t the only one to have experienced this phenomenon – to have experienced James’ transformation from a two-dimensional image and a name known around the league to a physical, NBA mecca to a jumping-shooting, sweaty, foul-mouthed living legend. .
When D’Angelo Russell was in college at Ohio State in 2014-15, the Buckeyes’ basketball locker room offered a locker room for James, even though LeBron was never enrolled there.
The Buckeyes view James as a major benefactor to the program, already a two-time NBA champion and four-time MVP when the locker room rose in Columbus in 2013. When the Lakers traded Russell in February, the two — D-Lo and LeBron — joined forces.
By the end of this season, James will be 21 years old — or the legal drinking age — during his illustrious NBA career. He is by far the oldest player on the Lakers, turning 39 on December 30. He is also the league’s all-time scoring leader.
It’s the most hallowed personal record in the sport, and it now belongs to the man who has been the de facto “face” of the NBA for a decade.
“It’s just an adjustment to play with someone of that caliber,” said Anthony Davis, the Lakers’ second-oldest and second-most decorated player at 30, who has played in eight All-Star games. And James only has 19 games.
Davis is about to enter his fifth year with LeBron in Los Angeles — and the years are quickly passing by. Davis came to Los Angeles via a trade facilitated by his agent and James’ agent, Rich Paul, and had James’ full support. They won the championship together in their first season. This is Davis’ first championship and James’ fourth championship.
“Obviously, we succeeded,” Davis said. “We continue to try to find ways to get back to normal for me and him and the people around us,” he later clarified that he meant winning another championship.
As hinted before, James is still one of the best players in the league. The 38-year-old averaged 28.9 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game with the Lakers, surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the leading scorer in league history. The team’s resurgence that followed was stunning, with James leading the way.
But his body, while it might not let him down like the bodies of older superstars, certainly gets in the way. Injuries, wear and tear caused him to miss 111 games in his five years with the Lakers.
The season that begins Tuesday in Denver will be the first in which LeBron publicly considered retirement at the end of last season.
James has also never participated in a preseason like the one that just ended. He’s fully healthy — which is good considering his unfortunate collapse over the past few years — but has barely spoken to the media throughout training camp. He violated NBA rules by refusing to speak after the preseason games he participated in, and on top of that, he showed a marked departure from the way he’s handled things for much of the past two decades.
When he spoke to reporters in Los Angeles on Saturday, for the first time in more than a week, he said, “My motivation is to continue to do the best I can and solidify what I want to do in my career and still look forward to it.” To Larry, “The O’Brien Trophy is in my mind every day,” which is his motivation as he enters his third decade in the NBA.
“I also want to be a legend in this game and have my game speak for itself long after I play,” James added. “But this team also inspires me. Coming to practice every day, watching the players go to work every day and challenge each other to try to get better every day. To achieve what we want to do. So that’s also a motivation.”
LeBron’s experience, while still ongoing, is entering a new and perhaps final phase. An end date is uncertain, but with him no longer serving as the league’s outward voice, openly considering retirement and heading into his 40s, playing with James or watching him play becomes more of an appreciation job than an exercise in residence. Any given game or moment.
“This guy gives his all to the game,” Lakers coach Davon Hamm said. “He deserves a chance to be with his family, think about it, have some comfort, some meditation time and some personal time to figure out what you want to do and how you want to move forward. It’s our responsibility to be ready to pivot in whatever direction we decide. To us Fortunately, I decided to come back.”
Hamm said that from this fall to last year, James lost significantly, not in terms of weight, but in terms of mood. Casual observers would agree that the pressure and drama James often encounters are non-existent.
The Lakers revamped their entire roster before the trade deadline, emerging from Russell Westbrook and others with James’ approval. The Lakers’ trip to the Western Conference Finals, along with the additions of Vincent, Cam Reddish, Taurean Prince and Christian Wood as role players and the re-signing of rising star Austin Reeves, has James is in a better position to have more contact with Lakers executives than perhaps ever before.
James could become a free agent next summer if he declines his $51 million player option. This summer, his son Bronny suffered serious health issues that may have delayed his entry into the NBA draft, which may be the biggest factor affecting James’ free agency. If possible, he’d like to play on the same team as his son, but even if Bronny enters the draft (he plans to play as a freshman at USC at some point this season), most observers think Lakers we’re going to find a way to make sure that happens in Los Angeles.
Meanwhile, James’ status as one of the greatest players of all time has become unshakable and continues to rise among his peers and even the public.
“Some people might say he’s No. 2, but other people like me, I say he’s No. 1 and he’s still going forward,” said Giannis Antetokounmpo, who made it clear that he believes James is the best NBA player of all time, ahead of Michael Jordan.
In barbershop debates, Jordan is usually the favorite—beating out LeBron as the greatest player, according to an NBA panel of experts. sports world Two years ago.last year, in sports worldIn the Player of the Year voting, Jordan once again won the vote, but more players than ever chose James.
Giannis’ star teammate Damian Lillard said: “I think people are going to look back on this job in 20-plus years or however long it’s been, and when this is over, I think they’re going to have more respect (for James). ).” Milwaukee Bucks. “For those of us who are involved in it like I am, and the rest of us who do this job, we have to put our bodies through it, we have to deal with the pressure, we have to perform well, all of those things have to go with what we do. Consistent. Personal life, I think people like us respect that.
“But when the game is over, I think you, the fans who just watched it, will respect him even more in the future.”
Lillard’s first year in the NBA was 2012, shortly after James won his first NBA championship. Lillard said he was in eighth grade when LeBron made his NBA debut, and to this day he’s still amazed that James exceeded expectations for his career under unprecedented scrutiny.
“I was watching him play on ESPN at the time, so having that hype and living up to it and then some,” Lillard said, “becoming the leading scorer in the history of the league and winning the games he won wins. , being scrutinized like now and then. … I can only respect him (the way he handles pressure).”
Antetokounmpo’s first season was James’ last in Miami. Since then, LeBron has returned to Cleveland for the second time, reaching the NBA Finals four times and winning the 2016 championship. James then went to Los Angeles and became the first player in NBA history to win the best player award on a team that won championships in three cities.
Giannis has now won two MVPs and a championship. He said James provides a “blueprint” for any star looking for longevity in the sport.
“For 21 years, you’ve never been in trouble, been able to accept your family, protect this family, raise your kids the right way, you know, be happily married, all of that, perfect,” Antetokounmpo said . “He kind of sets the blueprint for the rest of us moving forward. That’s what I want. I want to be able to do what I do on the field consistently, perform well, stay healthy and provide for my team Helping, being able to, you know, raise my family and live as normal a life as possible away from what I did for them on the field. Stay out of trouble.
“Hopefully one day, you know, when I’m done playing basketball… maybe you’ll mention me? I don’t know. But he set a blueprint for all athletes coming into the NBA to follow.”
This is another LeBron season. Enjoy it, even though his presence as a basketball star is more than just a picture on the wall.
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(Top photo: Andy Lyon/Getty Images)