Lebron James is not overrated imo
The game has changed since the era of wilt or russel where one dominant player could win you a title.
Look at dominant teams over the last 25 years....
Celtics: brid, parish, machale, ainge etc.
Lakers: magic, kareem, scott, worthy etc.
Pistons: isiah, rodman, mahorn, laimbeer etc.
Bulls: jordan, pippen, grant, rodman, kerr etc.
Spurs: duncan, ginobli, parker etc.
All these teams were put togther like puzzles with each part complimenting the main piece.
Lebron does not have the puzzle yet. Bringing in zerbiak and wallace was a weak attempt at this but will fall short.
He is a kid. He would be just coming out of college now if he stuck for 4 years. What he is capable of doing at his size and god goven athletic ability is unlimited.
He must continue to work on his shot and if he can become a genuine threat from beyond the arc, he just may break some scoring records that MJ set.
Right now he is the best driving player in the game. Yes.... better than Kobe right now... maybe not 2 or 3 years ago but now he is.
He has the strength to post up players at his position and players that are bigger then him.
Lebron is second to Kobe in the following respects:
Defense: when Kobe wants to, like Jordan he can be a defensive MVP ( tournament of americas in las vegas in the summer was a perfect example )
Final Shot: I have seen no one besides Kobe who has even come close to Jordan with respect to wanting the ball with 5 seconds left and the audience and defense knowing no matter what, his shot was most likely going down.
So for Lebron to surpass Kobe as the premier player in the game, these things must happen in addition to Danny Ferry figuring out what it takes to add 2 complimenting players to the cavs roster that pose match up problems for opposing teams night in and night out.
PS
As far as what player one would look at to start a franchise, I would lean towards dwight howard at this point. The importance of a big man in this league is paramount. My list above, besides the bulls who used a 4 man rotation with likes of purdue, wennington, longly and cartwright, all had dominant centers. And imo Howard may go down as the most athletic center of all time before his days are through.
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