How To Be the Biggest Loser, Like LeBron James (NOT!)

Prolog: I wrote this last year on the heals of Cleveland's loss to Golden State in the 2015 NBA Finals. Many called LeBron a loser despite heroic and leading efforts in every series he played. Here we are, one year later ... and he's won again. Enjoy the look back!

Let’s get something straight! LeBron James is NOT a loser. He never has been and he never will be. For those who call him a loser, I want you to know that I wish I was that good of a loser!

Let’s face it, in the world of sports, and I do mean the entire world, winning is the goal and the fascination. Unless you live in a long-term deprived city rooting for a perennial losing team (like the Chicago Cubs in baseball in the USA), your dreams and hopes at the beginning of every season are to “Win It All!”

Vince Lombardi, a great winner in American football once said, “Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.” Of course, this quote originated in a different form from Henry Russell “Red” Sanders, coach of the UCLA (University of California at Los Angeles) American college football team. As the oft-cited rhetorical question goes, “Who ever remembers the team (person) that took 2nd place?”

In addition to the enthrallment with winning, there are the never-ending comparisons to players and teams of the past. With today’s social media providing a platform for anyone and everyone to opine, the “my favorite player (team) is better than yours” debates go on like a perpetual motion machine.

For LeBron James, the comparison is almost always against Michael Jordan, the 6-time NBA champion, 5-time NBA MVP, and 6-time NBA Finals MVP. Is LeBron James a loser because with 2 wins and 4 losses in the NBA Finals he pales in comparison to Michael Jordan’s 6 wins and no losses? Or, Bill Russell’s 11 wins and only 1 loss? Absolutely not!

Just the facts, please

First, let’s take a look at some statistics and facts about LeBron’s most recent performance in the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors and his career to date.

• First player in NBA history not from the 1960s Celtics to appear in 5 consecutive NBA Finals and the first to do it with two different teams.
  • Three of the six years his teams were in the finals they were the statistically lowest rated players (excluding LeBron) in NBA Finals history.
• First player in NBA history to lead the both teams in the finals in points, rebounds, and assists.
  • He nearly achieved an NBA “triple double” for the finals (more than 10 points, rebounds, and assists – he averaged “only” 9 assists).
  • Between points and assists, he accounted for at least 50 points per game.
• 4 times NBA MVP (just like during Wayne Gretzky’s and Michael Jordan’s tenures – they should probably name the award after him and give it to others).
• 2 times NBA Finals MVP.
• He played 93% of the team’s minutes during the finals this year.
• He averaged 38.3% of his team’s points in the finals, 2nd only to Michael Jordan’s 38.4% in 1993.
• His key teammates missed 21 shots during the precious little time they were on the court while LeBron was resting.
• His two best teammates, NBA All Stars, went down with season-ending injuries during the playoffs.

Winning isn’t everything, is it?

Basketball is somewhat unique due to the fact that there are only 5 players on the court at a time. One player can make a huge impact, especially when one is arguably the greatest in the world. Look at the impact that Lionel Messi has in soccer with a much larger field and more players. Their excellence shines, win or lose.

There are many ways to measure a player’s greatness. While Big Data is now getting attention globally for business, it’s been in sports forever. Comparisons abound. Is Michael Jordan the greatest basketball player ever? Some numbers support the hypothesis that he is. Some numbers suggest others are the greatest.

Does the fact that LeBron lost in 4 championship series reduce his excellence? Does the fact that in each series he led his team and the other team either in points or assists or minutes played?

There is only so much a player can do to win it all. For every Batman, there has to be at least one Robin for the team to win. Michael Jordan had Scottie Pippen. Magic Johnson had Kareem Abdul Jabbar and James Worthy. Larry Bird had Kevin McHale and Robert Parrish. Nobody won it by himself.

If you want to equate winning with solo performances, you might want to look at track, swimming, golf and tennis. However, even in individual sports, one can achieve their personal best ever performance and still lose the match. That does not make them a loser. 

Damned if he does, damned if he doesn’t

LeBron did not shoot enough. LeBron shot the ball too much.

LeBron did not drive into the lane enough. LeBron did not shoot enough 3-pointers.

To some, no matter what he did, there was always the more compelling contrarian view. Before and after the game, the talking heads of the media world would argue about what he did, what he didn’t do, what he should have done, and on and on.

LeBron single-handedly took a team to the championship series with one of the weakest championship rosters in NBA history. He’s done that 3 times now. One can argue that not a single player who started alongside LeBron after Kyrie Irving got hurt would have played for the Warriors starting 5. He did everything he could to keep the team in the series, whether by himself (scoring a lot) or enabling others (assists).

Before and after

We have data to show the “LeBron Effect” over a 12-year period. He arrived in Cleveland in 2003. Up until that point, Cleveland finished 2nd place once and 3rd place three times in 33 seasons. During his 7 years in Cleveland, they finished in 1st place twice and 2nd place once – never below 4th place in has last 5 years. They made it past the first round of the playoffs 5 consecutive years and to the NBA Finals once. Including the 2014-2015 season, they have been in 6 consecutive playoffs and a 2nd trip to the Finals.

What happened after LeBron left? Cleveland won 87 games in 4 seasons finishing out of the playoffs and in the lowest tier of the NBA. We already know what happened when he came back to Cleveland this year. 

How about Miami? True, the Miami Heat won a championship with Dwayne Wade and Shaquille O’Neal in 2006. But, they flirted with excellence for many years and only achieved the pinnacle once. The four years prior to LeBron, they never got further than the first round of the playoffs.

Enter LeBron to Miami: four consecutive NBA Finals and two championships. Say goodbye to LeBron and Miami falls to the bottom tier of their division.

I won’t bore anyone with analytics to show the correlation and causality between LeBron and the success of the teams he plays for. It’s so clear, it’s nearly binary.

Leadership

The last point to address regarding LeBron is his role as a leader. This young man entered the NBA at 19 years old with a degree of fanfare rarely seen in sports. The NBA is one of the few sports where a child can become a man quickly. He was anointed to be the savior of Cleveland – no pressure on that young man. He’s been in the media spotlight for his entire career and the main face of the NBA globally.

As we scrutinize his 6 years of championship series performances, not once did you hear LeBron blaming or deflecting performance issues to his teammates. To the contrary, he’s taken a disproportionate percentage of the “blame” on himself. He speaks positively about his teammates. He talks about hard work. He gives 100% on the court every night – heck, I get tired watching him toil and work harder than anyone out there.

If there is ever a mark of a true leader, especially when you are one of the players (not a coach), it’s how you perform and work with your team. The respect that his teammates have for him is glaringly evident. Regardless of what words they use when asked, their play on the court says it all – he lifts them up to levels they’ve never experienced before. He’s the modern day Wayne Gretzky of basketball. 

The greatest?

Finally, just this week the spotlight shone down upon him brightly once again. And, yes, he clearly brought it upon himself. When asked about his confidence for the clearly wavering Cleveland Cavaliers to win the championship while down 3 games to 2, he said “I’m confident because I’m the best player in the world. It’s as simple as that.”

He was trying to inspire his teammates, trying to take the pressure off of them. He could have easily said “If my teammates could only hit a few shots …” He didn’t.

I grew up watching Cassius Clay become Muhammad Ali when he proclaimed, “I am the greatest!” At that time, Ali was raked over the coals for his brashness, but not his heart or his performance. Today, with time providing perspective, he’s revered as one of the greatest boxers and athletes ever. The admiration is global.

“Despite James’s performance for the ages over six games — he averaged 35.8 points, 13.3 rebounds and 8.8 assists — why are there always haters, nit-pickers and naysayers always diminishing his accomplishments?’ (From ESPN)

As Taylor Swift laments, “Haters gonna hate, hate, hate …!”

LeBron will have his time, too. And, he will be looked back at as “One of the Greatest!” Not a loser! 

Biggest loser?

Don’t you wish you were that great of a loser? I wish my resume were as amazing as LeBron’s! 

ciao…mam

Michael Massetti is a supply chain executive and a life-long athlete who loves sports and the analogies and metaphors comparing sports, leadership, teams, and performance. He’s also a die-hard Notre Dame and New York Yankees fanatic.

Other articles by Michael …

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• How Centerfield Made Me the Leader I Am Today!
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• Are Supply and Demand Driving You Crazy?
• Having Fun Managing Your Suppliers?
• Risky Business
• What Did You Call Her?
• Can Your Supply Chain Do This?
• Supplier Remuneration – Sometimes You Just Have to Ask
• Don’t Be Afraid to Say “No!” to a Bad Contract
• Relationships Do Affect Sourcing Decisions