MIAMI: His field-goal percentage is leaps and bounds better than his previous eight professional seasons.
So is his 3-point shooting percentage and defensive rebounds per game average.
On Sunday, his streak of 25 consecutive games with at least 15 points, five rebounds and five assists was snapped. The only other player in NBA history to reach that triple in at least 25 in a row was Oscar Robertson, who did it three times.
But to hear LeBron James tell it, he’s not playing the best basketball of his life.
“Naw,” he said after practice Monday at AmericanAirlines Arena. “My senior year of high school was my best basketball ever.”
In case you’ve forgotten, that was 2002-03, when he led St. Vincent-St. Mary to its third state title in four years and the Irish captured the mythical national championship after playing a coast-to-coast schedule that included two nationally televised games.
That might be James’ gold standard, the stuff of which movies are (literally) made. But there could be a common thread in that special senior year and this season, when James appears headed for his third NBA Most Valuable Player award.
As a junior at St. V-M, James was knocked down, distraught over losing the state championship to Cincinnati Roger Bacon.
Last season, his first with the Miami Heat, James was ripped from start to finish. First for abandoning the Cavaliers with his ill-conceived “Decision,” then for choking in the clutch as the Heat fell to the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals.
“I beat myself up about that all the time. I got a lot of junk about that and I understand what this game is all about,” James said of the Finals failure. “That was the biggest stage and I didn’t produce for my teammates down the stretch. That hurt me more than anybody, to not be there for my teammates in a big moment. I learned from that and it’s made me a better player and a better person, as you see today.”
Love him or hate him, Northeast Ohioans might concede one thing about James: He comes back with a vengeance.
Going into tonight’s game against the Cavs in Miami, James has scored 30 or more points in 13 games for the Heat (18-6). Wednesday, he poured in a franchise-record 24 first-quarter points against the Milwaukee Bucks, an effort that tied the team mark for any quarter. He was named Eastern Conference player of the month for January as the Heat won a franchise-record 12 games.
“I think he’s the best player in basketball right now,” Heat coach Eric Spoelstra said.
“His numbers are outstanding if you simply look at it across the board, the efficiency and the all-around game, there really isn’t anybody that’s his peer in all the different dimensions. Even defensively, he’s a two-way player. He guards usually the best perimeter player and he has to guard four positions and sometimes five.”
Heat guard Dwyane Wade said James is having an “MVP-type season.” Wade is most amazed by James’ .552 field-goal percentage, fourth in the NBA going into Monday night. James’ previous best for a full season was .510 in 2010-11.
“It’s amazing,” Wade said. “This many games into the season, that’s not by accident. He’s taking high percentage shots, but you could tell he put a lot of his work into his game in the summertime.
“He’s a stat-stuffer. That 15-5-5, he walks into that. He’s the type of player that every year could be considered an MVP candidate because he’s going to make sure his team is good and he’s going to have the numbers.”
James said some of those numbers have to do with the fact that he’s more “free” and “happy” in Miami this season, partially because he’s not wearing the mantle of villain everywhere he goes. But it’s also a result of his work on his game, “mostly in the post and off the dribble.”
“My teammates are giving me an opportunity to do the things I know I’m capable of and I’m able to capitalize on it,” he said.
He’s also expanding into more of a leadership role with Spoelstra going to his “Big Five” in the fourth quarter of the previous two games. When James is joined by Wade, Chris Bosh, Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller, a lineup the Heat used last year in the playoffs, James becomes the point guard.
Asked if he goes into Robertson mode in that situation, James said: “I guess so. I like that.” But James said he isn’t concentrating on passing.
“I’m still myself. You go to the point guard, you just make sure everyone is in the right spot offensively,” he said. “You’ve got to get guys in the right space so they can benefit individually to help the team. I know I’m capable of doing that.”
James seemed appreciative of Spoelstra lauding him as the league’s best. But in James’ mind, he’s demanding the same effort from himself that he expected in high school.
“Any time fans leave the game, hopefully they say, ‘LeBron was the best player on the court tonight,’ ” he said. “I hold myself to that standard and I’m happy to be around other great players as well. It’s the drive and the passion I have and the goals that I have for myself individually.”
James hasn’t forgotten his critics, most recently those who say he can’t finish in the playoffs. Perhaps he knows he might never earn their praise. But as he raises his game to unprecedented heights, their silence might be satisfying.
Marla Ridenour can be reached at mridenour@thebeaconjournal.com. Read her blog at http://marla.ohio.com/. Follow her on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/MarlaRidenour.
