”The Moment” is a weekly feature running every Friday showcasing the NBA’s best highlight of the week.
Chalk it up to the fact we’ve been watching him do this for 13 years now and it’s somehow just become old hat, or maybe because so many other parts of his game have evolved to the point where his physical gifts aren’t as impressive.
Whatever it is, it’s undeniable that LeBron James has a special kind of athleticism.
Take this clip above, for example. This is a 31-year-old man who has played in all but 79 games over the course of his illustrious career so far, logging a ridiculous 47,043 total minutes played combined between the regular season and playoffs. You’d think he’d eventually lose some of that bounce, right? Apparently not.
What makes this play so impressive from James’ standpoint isn’t even the dunk – it’s a pretty standard two-hander – it’s the fact James was so quickly able to get up the floor after the turnover to put himself in position to catch the alley-oop. Another testament to his freakish physical abilities, throwing down the dunk was really just the cherry on top.
As for the lob itself, you don’t see guys going off the glass every day, and outside the fact that seeing it is just really cool, with the player throwing it off the backboard being Irving is a very positive sign for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Last season this time he’d probably go in and take that lay-up himself. Now, however, after about two years working together and a title to boot it looks like that trust and chemistry is all there between Irving, James and the rest of the Cavaliers.
It’s still early-goings, but at the moment Cleveland boasts the best offence in the league, scoring 115.3 points per 100 possessions. Strong, efficient offence the kind the Cavs have going right now don’t just happen overnight. With that trust there, they’re finally firing on all cylinders, meaning the defending champs could be that much tougher to beat this season.
