LeBron James has given his backing to natural talent rising above other concerns, arguing that ‘special’ NBA players will always rise to the top.
The NBA Draft is just over a month away, where prospective picks across the country will find out their destination, and begin their adventure in the league.
The recent NBA Draft Lottery results means number one pick Cooper Flagg looks set for the Dallas Mavericks, potential contenders next season, instead of desperate rebuild teams the Utah Jazz or Washington Wizards.
Flagg is good enough to thrive wherever he lands, and in the eyes of superstar LeBron James, elite talent will always prosper, eventually.
James discussed the different paths top talents can take during his recent Mind The Game podcast with co-host Steve Nash.
Photo by MediaNews Group/The Mercury News via Getty ImagesLeBron James was taken with Gilbert Arenas and Russell Westbrook
LeBron James touched on a range of topics during his recent podcast and a discussion around playmakers led to him speaking in glowing terms about Gilbert Arenas.
James explained that he was full of admiration for the natural talent Gilbert Arenas had, as well as his own former LA Lakers teammate Russell Westbrook.
He explained: “Seeing guys like Russell Westbrook and, you know, Gilbert Arenas, guys coming out of college, UCLA, Arizona, Gil came off the bench, right? You know, you know, Darren Collison was a starting point guard at UCLA before Russell even got an opportunity.
“But it when you talk about things that cannot be denied, right? You could tell when they were on the court, or you saw them, it was something that had we talked about, the impact.
“Gil had the it factor, belief. He had the belief in himself. He had the it factor. Every time he touched the court, she was like, Oh, s___, this guy’s special. You know, this guy’s special.
“Every time Russ stepped on the court, Oh, this guy’s special. We’ve, we’ve never seen anything like this.
“That’s the beauty of the game sometimes, were you able, like those, I don’t want to say diamond in the rough, but, I mean, you look at Gil, I think he was a second round pick, right to Golden State.”
Gilbert Arenas dropped to second round and had 12 year NBA career
Gilbert Arenas was a highly-regarded college player from his time at Arizona, but a combination of injury and character concerns led to him dropping out of the first round.
The Warriors drafted Arenas with the 31st pick back in 2001, where he initially signed a two-year deal. And after winning the Most Improved Player in his second season, he signed a lucrative contract with the Washington Wizards.
Arenas spent seven seasons with the Wizards, including some notoriety late in the stint, before spells with the Magic and Grizzlies.
Now a media personality, Arenas played 552 NBA regular season games where he averaged an impressive 20.7 points per game, and 31 postseason games averaging 17.1 ppg.
LeBron James’ point was right that the talent he had did not get held back by his low draft pick, he thrived once he hit the court in the NBA, while the other player he referenced is still going strong.
Russell Westbrook was drafted in 2008, played in the finals against LeBron James in 2012, before teaming up with him in 2021 in an ultimately frustrating two-year stint with the Lakers.
A former MVP, Westbrook is one of only two players in NBA history to average a triple-double in a season, becoming the first to do it before his current Nuggets teammate Nikola Jokic matched the feat.