It is tough to imagine playing on a team with the best basketball player in the world in an “extremely frustrating” manner. Yet Chris Bosh, slightly disgruntled ex-teammate of LeBron James, made those remarks in a phony piece of advice for new Cavalier Kevin Love.
Having been to the NBA Finals in all four years of his partnership with LeBron, Bosh is used to seeing all the offensive naturally favoring James, especially late in games.
But the thing that might make those observations a bit presumptuous is that LeBron is starting to be criticized for sharing the ball too much, as opposed to absorbing more shot opportunities.
Bosh saw his shots taken per game slide from 16 in his final year in Toronto, to 12 in the last year of Miami’s big three. He has reason to be peeved, but it may show that Bosh learned nothing about being a teammate in those four years, the same years that LeBron often refers to as his “college years.”
Point being: Everyone, Love included, will have to sacrifice something, as any player would in a team loaded with offensive aptitude. But it won’t be anywhere near what Bosh had to give up in South Beach.
After all, LeBron has stated that this Kyrie Irving’s show. That only counts for so much, but James is a smart player, and knows his days of doing the heavy lifting are over. Not that he couldn’t handle the physical grind even near age 30, but ever since he was on a team that had all stars around him, James learned to play without the ball in his hands every single possession.
In Minnesota, Love was counted on to do it all, just like Bosh was north of the boarder. Will he get those chances again in Cleveland? Not every night, but pampering a player like that is a good way to light up the stat sheets, but not the best way to win games.
So, yes, Love will have to sacrifice. But “extremely frustrating” might not be the best choice of words.
Really, what is the difference between shooting 16 times or 12 times a game? Do players even keep a count of how many shots the need on a nightly basis to be effective?
Or perhaps Bosh was referring the limelight that comes with being James’ teammate? Being that Love comes from a small market with a losing team, the attention from the media may be a breath of fresh air for the ULCA product who’s abilities have been underappreciated all his years with the Wolves.
No question there were uncertainties for Bosh and Dwyane Wade when James joined them in Miami. But Love, observing the big three from afar, could rip a page out of that novel and use it as a blueprint for how to get three elite scorers their share of the ball, while staying unselfish and winning games.
Due to the presence of Love and Irving, James will be able to play off the ball more this season than ever before. But justly or not, James will be the man to bear any criticism if the Cav’s season starts slow. It is something that Love will not need to sacrifice at all.
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Bosh’s Comments Will Not Daunt Love
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