7 NBA players that will remind you of LeBron James

4. Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks)

The one glaring difference between the league’s reigning MVP and the four-time MVP is their passing ability.

Giannis Antetokounmpo is an adequate passer, good enough that former Milwaukee Bucks coach Jason Kidd wanted to transition the 6’11” forward to point guard. LeBron is an all-time elite passer, though, the one who Magic Johnson has said reminds him of himself.

Another notable difference is their shooting ability. LeBron worked his way up from having a shaky jumper to a reliable one, whereas Giannis is still hounded by criticisms that he needs to improve his jumper to reach the next level as a clutch performer.

After that, there are a lot of similarities between the “Greek Freak” and “King James.”

Giannis has talked about how he looked up to LeBron growing up, and LeBron has compared his younger self to Giannis.

As one nickname implies, they are both physical freaks of nature who are almost impossible to stop when they get a head of steam. Giannis’ unnatural length allows him to finish some plays with a dunk that LeBron would finish with a layup, but they are mostly equal in terms of strength and body control.

In his MVP season of 2018-19, Giannis led the Bucks to the league’s best record and No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference — seemingly assuming the torch LeBron had left behind when he moved from Cleveland to L.A. — but Milwaukee’s postseason run was stopped by Kawhi Leonard and the Toronto Raptors.

With Kawhi now in L.A., the path is clear for Giannis to dominate the East in the 2020s like LeBron did in the 2010s.