Rumors

Eddie Johnson: LeBron James has signed with another contender and almost immediately the conversation turned predictable. 'He’s ring chasing.' Really, is that what he is doing? And since when did wanting to win become an insult? I grew up in the projects of Cabrini Green and then learned to compete on the west side of Chicago in a single-parent household. Not just at sports, but freaking LIFE. I had two challenges: 1. Win at whatever sport I was competing in at the time and, 2. Win the game of navigating back home safely, avoiding difficult situations.

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Eddie Johnson: LeBron grew up in Akron, Ohio, with a single parent, and based on the road he has talked about traveling, it seems to be a carbon copy of what I went through. Hundreds of athletes can relate to this journey, and so it is not unique, but if you didn't live any part of it, you would never understand that insane drive to succeed no matter what. So everyone knows LeBron's journey; he has been in your face for 23 years straight with no breaks in between. You know he is an amazing basketball player... So let's stop pretending this conversation is really about basketball. We all know it's about legacy.

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Eddie Johnson: For over two decades, LeBron has been judged by a different standard than any player we have ever seen. Every move inside and outside the lines he makes isn't evaluated on whether it helps his team win. It's evaluated by one question: 'Does this help or hurt his GOAT argument ?' That's the real discussion.

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Eddie Johnson: Athletes are coached, built and motivated their entire lives to chase championships. Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Shaquille O'Neal all changed teams for another shot at titles and nobody accused those players of doing something wrong because they still wanted to win. Yet somehow when LeBron does it, 'ring chasing' suddenly becomes an issue. Why? Because every championship LeBron wins changes history. It changes where people rank him, how future generations remember him and makes the Michael Jordan debate more uncomfortable for people who've already made up their minds. That's why every move becomes controversial.

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Eddie Johnson: Let's be honest about something else... When LeBron stayed with the struggling Cavs team, critics asked why he didn't leave. When he leaves for a better opportunity, critics say he is taking the easy way out. With LeBron, the standards become impossible. LeBron is entering his 24th NBA season, and at 41 years old he has nothing to prove individually. The scoring record is his, he has won MVPs and has made more All-NBA and All-Stars than anybody else. He's No. 1 all-time in a zillion NBA categories. So what should motivate him now? WINNING.

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Eddie Johnson: That's what great competitors do. No one calls it ring chasing when a veteran golfer joins the Champions Tour trying to win another major. But somehow basketball has created a term that's used almost exclusively against one player, and that's LeBron James. At one point, it gets boring and repetitive. For over two decades, LeBron has built the most complete statistical resume the NBA has ever seen. Yet every debate eventually lands in the same place: 'Jordan was 6-0 in the NBA Finals.'

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Eddie Johnson: There is no question MJ's six championships and six Finals MVPs are among the greatest accomplishments in sports history. I played against him many times and I can tell you he truly is the most maniacal competitor I have ever encountered. But if championships alone determine greatness, then why isn't Bill Russell's 11 championships the end of the discussion? Well, it's because everyone knows basketball greatness has never been measured by just one statistic. It's measured by the total body of work, accounting for championships, individual dominance, versatility, impact, etcetera.

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Eddie Johnson: LeBron's resume is built on all of those. When he won championships, he wasn't simply part of great teams but actually the driving force. Another title would not only increase his ring count, but also strengthen his resume and make the GOAT debate even more difficult for those who believe Jordan's 6-0 NBA Finals record is the deciding factor. What motivates him now is the same thing that motivated him when he entered the league as an 18-year-old kid: WINNING. That's what greatness looks like, and maybe the real reason some people have a problem with it isn't that LeBron is chasing another title. Maybe it's because every new accolade brings him one step closer to rewriting the greatest debate basketball has ever known.

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SiriusXM NBA Radio: “The only thing more shocking I’ve seen this year other than Anunoby’s tip-in was that trade" Tim Legler shares his reaction to the 76ers-Celtics blockbuster trade with @termineradio, @Jumpshot8, and Ryan McDonough

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NBA Central: Jaylen Brown’s trade value isn’t that high around the league, per @BobbyMarks42 “I had an analytics guy tell me, ‘We view [Jaylen Brown] as the seventh-best player on a TEAM.’”😳 Eddie A Johnson: Not surprising coming from a mathematical cubicle nerd!

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Eddie A Johnson: Shaq. You are arguably next to Wilt. The most dominant basketball player ever in the paint, but Wemby has the ability to become a threat all over the court and be more dominant than you that way!

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Hoop Central: Fox was called for a foul on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander here. Eddie Johnson: I would have scored 25,000 points based on this occurrence. I got punched in stomach, squeezed on my hip and pushed, tapped on elbow. Etc….

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StatMuse: Fun Fact: Jared McCain has scored more points in the Conference Finals than the last six 76ers lottery picks combined. Eddie Johnson: The King of Analytics, couldn’t use this guy in Philly.

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Eddie Johnson: This was a flagrant 2 and I am a SGA supporter. Flat out dirty maneuver. He could have dislocated Reeves elbow. I know. I got my shoulder dislocated on this same kind of play.

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