LeBron James is regarded by many as the greatest basketball player ever to live, having secured four NBA titles, four MVPs, and the all-time scoring record. Five-time All-Star and his former teammate, Kevin Love, revealed exactly why James is also the most brilliant player he’s ever played with.
LeBron James Knows ‘Every Team’s Play’
Speaking on The Old Man and The Three podcast, Love said, “He knew every team’s play, he knew every guy’s tendency… In terms of basketball, he does have a photographic type memory. That’s not normal… It’s a hack when the best player in the world, a 6’9” 260 LB freight train, is setting the tone in that way.”
Love knows all too well the brain of James, with the pair playing four seasons together, winning the NBA Championship in 2016, and making three straight Finals appearances.
During an interview in 2020, James explained, “I’ve always had it (a photographic memory). A lot of my friends, when I was younger, playing the game, they were like, ‘Man, how did you remember that play?’
“I never thought about it. I didn’t even know what photographic memory meant when I was younger until I got older. It’s something that I was born with or blessed with.”
James has been blessed with a body that can dismantle teams through sheer size and power, but it’s his brain that has kept him playing at a high level going into his 23rd year. Even at the age of 41, James is still tearing up the league with incredible performances. In his last three games, James has averaged 29 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists.
Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers said, ‘There are a lot of people in the league with LeBron’s body, but there’s no one in the league with his brain.’
In the Lakers’ victory against the Memphis Grizzlies earlier this week, coach JJ Redick admitted that James had identified that if he played in the post and dished the ball, the Lakers would create more offensive looks.
The minor tweak by James helped the Lakers overturn a 16-point deficit, with James having 10 assists and only one turnover in the game. Kevin Love has been a solid three-point shooter in his career, averaging 36.8% from beyond the arc.
However, Love is no Luka Dončić (33.5 PPG), and if Dončić can continue to feed off of James’ incredible basketball IQ, then there is no reason the Lakers can’t push for a deep playoff run come the summer.
