LeBron James clearly knows how dangerous Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is, and after the Lakers’ second-round playoff loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, he made it clear that the reigning MVP deserves to be defended with as much urgency as Giannis Antetokounmpo.
“If you don’t respect Giannis the same way you do him… when Giannis gets the rebound, everybody’s going to talk about coming back and putting the basket on Giannis,” James said on the latest episode of his “Mind the Game” podcast. “Come back, set up the defense and load up, because if not, he’s going to burst through the gap and get to the rim right away. From a physical standpoint, you don’t look at Shai that way because you look at him and you’re like, okay, he’s not 6-foot-11.” He’s not as big and strong as Giannis is, he’s not super physical like Giannis is downhill.
“But, when you’re on the court, you realize he’s definitely like that. He uses his big shoulders, he uses his arms, he uses your speed against you when you step back, and now he’s using it against you. So, if you’re not getting to the layup with two guys, three guys, and let Shea drive the ball to the layup, he’s going to penetrate those gaps. He’s going to get to the rim, he’s going to finish, or he’s going to get to the free throw line, because now you’re off balance.
“You’ve got to treat him with Giannis-level respect in the empty court, and that’s just the first part. And then you’ve got to account for him in the half-court as well. But, you’ve got to do it before he even starts because he’s so good.”
SGA now has two back-to-back MVPs, the same season Giannis had in 2018-19 and 2019-20.
Read more: LeBron James on why Victor Wembanyama is so special
