You have to contain him," Flip Saunders said about LeBron James. "You're never going to stop him."
Containing LBJ is not easy, stopping him is almost impossible. If Flip Saunders can shut down LeBron James and get to the NBA Finals, he'll have to hook up with Sam Smith and write a book. Flip's guide to defending James could become a best seller. "We've got a name for it," Saunders said Saturday. "But I'm not going to talk about it now. Maybe later."
Well for now, I'll name it the "James Plan".
LeBron James has amazing talent. From God given talent to Nike contracts, the comparisons to Michael Jordan are easy to make. As rookies, both James and Jordan were named All-Stars and Rookie of the Year and LeBron joined MJ and Oscar Robertson as the only players in history to average at least 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists per game during their rookie seasons. It has always been clear that James has Jordan-esk talent, but can he be like Mike, get past Detroit and win multiple NBA titles? History is being created and we are all witnesses.
Jordan had a lot of success early in his career, but failed to produce during the post season. In Jordan's rookie year his Bulls lost in the first round. In his second season, Jordan posted a playoff record 63 points against the Boston Celtics - arguably one of the greatest teams ever. Despite personal accomplishments, Jordan's team was swept. In his third season, Jordan scored 37 points per game. But again, the Bulls lost in the first round to the Celtics.
Not until Jordan's fourth year in the league did he get past round 1. In Round 2, The Bulls were sent home by the "Bad Boys" of Detroit. In 1988-89, Jordan topped the Knicks and Cavs (over Ehlo), but was beat by the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Championship. In 1989-90, led by Pippen and Jordan, the Bulls made it back to the Eastern Conference Championship. Jordan lost to the Pistons for the third consecutive year and Detroit would capture their second consecutive title.
In 1991, Chicago finally swept Detroit. The Bulls only lost 2 post season games on their way to the first of three straight championships. Following the game, Isiah Thomas and the rest of the "Bad Boys" walked off the court with :04 left and didn't shake Jordan's hand. Jordan would make the Pistons pay for their defiant gesture busting the slowly diminishing Pistons for more than 25 straight wins. Jordan would go on to create a legacy that included 6 titles and 6 Finals MVP awards.
LeBron James couldn't lift the Cavaliers to the playoffs in his first two seasons as a pro but shined in his playoff debut last season with a triple-double. James advanced past round 1 and his Cavaliers had a 3-2 lead over Detroit in the conference semi-finals before exiting in 7. This season, for the first time in 15 years, Cleveland is in the Eastern Conference championship and has a rematch with the Pistons. It took Jordan 4 years of losing to Detroit before he finally got a taste of the NBA Finals, LeBron is hoping he won't have to experience a reign of Detroit dominance.
The Pistons are a lot like the "Bad Boys" because they are experienced, smart, well coached, relaxed yet hyper and have the killer drive. Experience and wisdom comes with 5 straight trips to the Eastern Conference Championship. The "Bad Boys" had Isiah Thomas and Bill Laimbeer, these Pistons have Chauncey Billups and Rasheed Wallace. Rasheed might be the only player I've ever seen who actually gets better the more he loses his composure. John Salley, Joe Dumars and Dennis Rodman were all contributors to the success of the Bad Boys. Tayshaun Prince (most likely to d-up James), Richard Hamilton, Antonio McDyess and Chris Webber are contributing to this seasons success. Jordan used Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant and BJ Armstrong to get past the Pistons. LeBron's entourage might not be as talented, but they are still capable of winning the series.
The way that Jordan got past Detroit was by getting everyone involved. Jordan was guarded under "The Jordan Rules" and saw a lot of double and triple teams. Under "The James Plan", LeBron may experience triple or quadruple teams and he will need his supporting cast to step up. Jordan did more for his team by doing less scoring on the offensive end. The playoffs in which Jordan got past Detroit, he averaged 8.4 assists per game and 31 points. In the previous post-season, Jordan averaged 6.8 assists and scored 36.7 points - proving that giving up the ball helped his team succeed. LeBron is averaging 8.1 assists and 25.9 points this post season versus 5.8 and 30.7 last year.
Jordan didn't win 6 titles by himself, and Cleveland will need more than just LeBron to get past Detroit. Jordan's Robin was Scottie Pippen. LeBron needs a little more help from his Robin, Larry Hughes. Hughes started the post season well, but slowed down at the end of the Nets series. LeBron needs Gooden, Ilgauskas, Snow, Pavlovic and Hughes to play on another level.
Wise LeBron knows that, "You can't get through Detroit training in no pool." Starting tonight, Basketball Player LeBron will have his "training" methods put to the test as he goes for try #2 against the new "Bad Boys".
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