Sports Illustrated Names LeBron No. 3 Player Of 2019-20 Season

LeBron James is the greatest star to ever play the game. He dominates the floor, but his debut season with the Los Angeles Lakers had a negative impact on his ratings. According to Sports Illustrated, LeBron ranks at No. 3 among the top 100 NBA players for the 2019-20 season.

The magazine explained their reasons for this ranking, including his minutes, younger players and his first season with the Lakers.

“Budging LeBron James from the top of this ranking—a spot he has occupied since the inception of SI’s Top 100 in 2013—required a confluence of factors. One of them is the unprecedented sum of minutes James has accrued in regular season, playoff, and international basketball, and the toll that takes on the 34-year-old’s body. Another is the rise of a new class of stars, led by Giannis Antetokounmpo. There’s also a penalty in the fact that James disregarded one side of the ball for the bulk of last season. And somewhere in all of this, we have to account for the reality that James played at least some role in the dissolution of his team and the alienation of the people who were his teammates. 

“Even while grappling with all of that, it’s hard to refute the idea that LeBron is still the best player alive when the games really matter. In a complex matchup, there’s no one you’d trust more than James to tease out a winning strategy. If the season came down to it, no one player could do more to turn the outcome of a game. If only it could all be so simple. How LeBron plays at the highest levels of competition is a vital part of his evaluation. It just can’t be the only part. All the pieces matter. The lack of defensive effort, the half-speed regular season, the collateral damage. The complete picture of LeBron’s season reiterated the costs that come with running a franchise around him, at a time when his game wasn’t paying off in the holistic way we’ve come to expect.

“Which isn’t to say that James isn’t a great player, or won’t be this season. Two others are simply in a position to offer more in the final calculus—or, at the very least, to offer something comparable with fewer complications. What gave LeBron claim to the top spot for so long was his completely unimpeachable case; it was all there, from production, impact, and efficiency all the way to health, leadership, and postseason success. Most of that case remains perfectly intact, though it’s begun to show some vulnerabilities. This was inevitable…right? James had defied the laws of nature for long enough to put himself in an exceptional category, but at some point he would have to pace himself even more carefully and need a bit more help than he did previously. At almost 35 years old, it doesn’t make sense for James to try to be the best player in the world every night. Perhaps it’s time we accept that he isn’t.”

Interestingly, Anthony Davis ranks at No. 6. NBA experts say that he and LeBron make the perfect duo. Let’s see how will the Lakers handle their rivals this season.