LeBron Parallels Very Much to...

[Teletopez]

Alex Rodriguez, specifically referring to the Alex of 2005-2007.

 

A-Rod's course of the season ran very similarly to how LeBron's did in his two Finals years. Alex would put up his usual regular numbers that would hover near the league's best. He won two MVP's in this period of time. As soon as the postseason hit, however, the numbers went crashing. He went absent with runners in scoring position. LeBron's struggles have started come Finals time. The sample size isn't as big as A-Rod's, but it's still worth observing.

 

The odd part is, even in 2007, where Alex had the best season of his career and came through in a number of big moments (and the moments come often in New York), the playoffs were something completely different. As for LeBron, we were constantly waiting for that indication that he was going to take over and light it up, because we've seen it happen multiple times before.

 

Worth noting, A-Rod had a renaissance playoff year in 2009.

 

The observation may be trivial to some of you, but it caught my interest.

Edited June 13, 2011 by Brooklyn Bound

[Check my Stats]

Or Wilt Chamberlain.

[Real Deal]

I can see where this makes sense. I haven't paid much attention to baseball, hardly at all, but I did watch a little back in the 90s, and did keep up with it the first part of the last decade. I was actually a Mariners fan, and I followed Griffey and A-Rod for a while, even when they put on another jersey.

 

I remember the hype, too...everyone saying that A-Rod was going to be the greatest player of all-time when it's all said and done (although I always thought that would be Griffey, until his injury).

 

Makes sense.

[Newman]

Or Wilt Chamberlain.

 

You serious?

[EastCoastNiner]

A-Rod has always had more talent on his team than LeBron James has, and A-Rod is a juicing fraud. I don't really see your comparison here, besides both are very talented athletes. LeBron James coming up short has had more to do with his team than him individually for the most part, unlike the fraud in New York.

[NomarFachix]

So much wrong with that post.

[EastCoastNiner]

So much wrong with that post.

 

No, not at all. Are you telling me LeBron has had more talent on his team than A-Rod except this year? That's pretty much what my post said. Is A-Rod a juicer? Yes or no?

 

There's nothing debatable in my post.

Edited June 13, 2011 by EastCoastNiner

[AboveLegit]

I just can't wrap my head around the comparison regarding Bron and Wilt... two completely different situations. For one, no great player ever had that big of a gap in competition along with all the rules in their favor like Wilt, except Russell, but to Bill's credit, he is the greatest winner in sports. Not only do I believe when it's all said and done, Bron is higher on the greatest ever list, but overall he's just a better talent.

 

It's probably the reason why I don't view Wilt as a top 5 player ever like most do. I can't really make a definitive list, but I may even put Shaq above him.

[NomarFachix]

A-Rod has always had more talent on his team than LeBron James has

You may not recall, but Rodriguez's Texas Ranger teams were horriawful. That alone makes this quote debatable.

 

LeBron James coming up short has had more to do with his team than him individually for the most part, unlike the fraud in New York.

I can't agree with this, either. Every single possession has gone through James, especially in his Cavalier days. In baseball, you have no choice but to let the other 8 fielders get a turn at-bat before your next time up, and you have no control over a large majority of the game (8/9's of the fielding positions, the pitching). If anything, I'd say Rodriguez had FAR less individual responsibility for postseason failures.

 

They compare in that Alex, like Bron, was touted as the best player in his sport and suffered completely underwhelming postseasons leading up to a relocation to a "superteam". Alex's first year in pinstripes was a failure, just as LeBron's just ended.

 

There's also the "juicing fraud" part that makes me giggle, since (I assume) you root for David Ortiz on a regular basis. That's just an afterthought, though.

[Teletopez]

I forgot to mention another key connection between the two: how much attention they drew from the media.

 

Dave Winfield was just talking to ESPN Radio about the same comparison.

 

Sent from my HTC on the Now Network from Sprint.

[EastCoastNiner]

You may not recall, but Rodriguez's Texas Ranger teams were horriawful. That alone makes this quote debatable.

 

 

I can't agree with this, either. Every single possession has gone through James, especially in his Cavalier days. In baseball, you have no choice but to let the other 8 fielders get a turn at-bat before your next time up, and you have no control over a large majority of the game (8/9's of the fielding positions, the pitching). If anything, I'd say Rodriguez had FAR less individual responsibility for postseason failures.

 

They compare in that Alex, like Bron, was touted as the best player in his sport and suffered completely underwhelming postseasons leading up to a relocation to a "superteam". Alex's first year in pinstripes was a failure, just as LeBron's just ended.

 

There's also the "juicing fraud" part that makes me giggle, since (I assume) you root for David Ortiz on a regular basis. That's just an afterthought, though.

 

He barely played for the Rangers, and his teams with Seattle and New York are far superior to what LeBron James has had to play with.

 

For the individual part, yes, LeBron has more responsibility, but A-Rod, as an individual, has come up shorter more times than LeBron James has. He's been shit in the post-season for ages.

 

Also, I hate David Ortiz. I have never liked him, and I'm sure a lot of my posts regarding the Red Sox mention that. For future reference, I do not like David Ortiz or Jonathan Papelbum, at all, whatsoever.

 

If you want to mention Manny, then that's a different story, but I have never liked Ortiz, but that's beside the point of this topic.

[NomarFachix]

A-Rod has a low-mid .900 career playoff OPS. A few points better than Papi, a few behind ManRam. That's fantastic, so the "shit" label is a bit overblown.

 

He spent three years with the Rangers, where he was "the man" and the team was his. Before that he was overshadowed by Grif and even the flowing mullet of Randy Johnson for a bit.

 

If I'm comparing Rod to Bron, I'm looking at Texas (where nothing was put in place around him and he eventually left) into his first year with a 'superteam' in the Yanks, and then the playoff failure. It's hard to ever have a 100% accurate comparison, especially when crossing sports, but I think the base is there. Wali makes good points.

 

I get what you're saying that the roid debate is OT, I just feel like Yanks and Sox fans lost the right to slander with the "juicer" label a long time ago

[Teletopez]

In the midst of the Dallas Mavericks winning the 2011 NBA Title over the Miami Heat, no one has garnered more criticism than the Heat's LeBron James, and Alex Rodriguez has something to say about it.

 

The New York Yankee third basemen spoke to Fox Sports regarding the heavy scrutiny James has received after his play in this year's NBA Finals.

 

"Winning a championship is not an easy thing to do regardless of talent. LeBron is a once in a lifetime player, especially the last year," he said.

 

Rodriguez, who has had his fair share of fan and media critics since joining the Yankees in 2004, continued: "We need to remember the kid is 26 years old, and celebrate his talent."

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