Lake Show Life
Fansided

LeBron James is in the midst of the best shooting season of his career

By Davide Tovani

MIAMI, FLORIDA - JANUARY 23: LeBron James #6 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts to a basket against the Miami Heat at FTX Arena on January 23, 2022 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
MIAMI, FLORIDA - JANUARY 23: LeBron James #6 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts to a basket against the Miami Heat at FTX Arena on January 23, 2022 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

In the tragic season the Los Angeles Lakers are going through in this pandemic year there is only one thing that is preventing them from sinking completely: LeBron James.

At 37 years old, the sensation from Akron is putting together one of the best seasons of his career in an effort to drag the disappointing Lakers and keep them in the conversation for a playoff spot and a remote chance to make an unexpected run at the championship.

In his 19th season in the NBA, the King is averaging 29 points, 7.9 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 1.6 steals and 1 block. Something that had never been done before. Michael Jordan nor Karl Malone or Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had put together those numbers at such a late age.

LeBron’s status as one of (if not the) greatest and freak of nature is being validated by this outstanding season and unprecedented performance, crowned by the achievement of a few days ago of becoming the no. 1 scorer in regular season and playoffs combined.

Alarming for the rest of the league, he does not show signs of slowing down for the next few years and his body is still not failing him as much as people predicted it would as of now.

LeBron James is shooting the ball unlike he ever has before.

Obviously, one of the reasons for this productive season and extended longevity for LeBron lies in the increased percentage of shots coming from the outside and the accuracy with which he is hitting them.

As a matter of fact, the current is probably the best shooting season of his career and that is what allows him to maintain such a high production despite the impossibility to produce continuous highlights as he used to in his early days. The numbers prove it.

This year James is attempting a career-high 7.9 threes, hitting a decent 35.2 percent. Although not a spectacular percentage, it is above his career average, good enough to let him score a career-high 2.8 treys. In addition, of the career-third-to-last 13.3 two-point attempts, he is making a career-second-best 61.9 percent, for an overall 52 percent from the field, despite the high number of three-pointers attempted. Furthermore, he is shooting 74.6 percent from the free-throw line, which is a vast improvement from his last three seasons, where he shot under 70 percent in each of them.

Advanced stats corroborate these numbers, showing how despite a career-high 37.3 percent 3-Point Attempt Rate and a career-low 27 percent Free Throw Attempt Rate, LeBron is registering a career-top-5 True Shooting Percentage of 61.3.

It appears that in year 19, in his late 30s, LeBron James has finally made the transition to the outside shot that other high-flying Hall of Famers like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant made in their early 30s. It is allowing him to remain productive despite not being able to be the flashy LeBron of 6-7 years ago while helping preserve his body for the long (still how long?) run.

Next. 50 greatest Lakers of all-time. dark

This is also a particular milestone given King James was never a gifted shooter like MJ or Kobe. It is a testament to the effort and time he keeps putting into his craft at 37 years old to improve his skills and be able at this point in his career to rely on his shot in order to extend his impact in the NBA.