Los Angeles Lakers: Is LeBron’s jump shot the key to a championship?

LeBron James has led the Los Angeles Lakers to the No. 1 seed in the West but is the team’s championship hopes in jeopardy due to his jump shot?

Lebron James is a three-time world champion and a four-time MVP. He is arguably second only to the likes of Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan as the best basketball player in history and has led the Los Angeles Lakers to the top seed in the West this season. But is there another level to his game? He’ll need to improve his jump shot for the team to win the championship.

Ever since James departed the Miami Heat organization, he’s been shooting 36.1 percent outside the paint. This is a 5.6 percent dropoff from his days with the Heat organization, where he averaged 41.7 percent. That is not a coincidence. The demanding work environment in Miami was a new experience for James.

According to ESPN, prior to arriving Miami, James would aimlessly shoot jumpers at practice. The Heat organization, alternatively, was perennially known to be militaristic in their expectations. It required their players to be at 9 percent body fat, as well as had them work out on literal military bases, doing defensive and conditioning drills.

This was within the first days of James joining the Heat in Pensacola, and would set the tone for the rest of the year, as the Heat organization had full-contact practices throughout his first year there. In Miami, James had a specific routine, first working on drills to improve his footwork around the basket with assistant coach David Fizdale, and then partaking in shooting drills with his teammates.

Everything changed when James left Miami and returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the summer of 2014 after owner Dan Gilbert promised to acquiesce to every one of his roster demands. Upon arrival, James convinced the team to trade first overall pick Andrew Wiggins to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Kevin Love.

James’ power within the organization meant that no one could hold him accountable for his actions. Consequently, he started to sit out practices with the pretext that he had a sore back. The lack of practice time didn’t allow him to put up the proper amount of reps on his jump shot, as he shot 37.7 percent outside the paint in his first year back with the Cavaliers.

Three years later, his former teammate, Isaiah Thomas, was annoyed with the lack of practice time because he couldn’t get his body used to basketball activities to be an effective player after his hip injury.

His coach, Tyronn Lue, even told the media that veterans don’t practice. James’s decision to continue not practicing contributed to him shooting 35.6 percent outside the paint in his next three years in Cavaliers.

James hasn’t changed his stance since joining the Lakers, with head coach Frank Vogel holding similar views as Tyron Lue. This time, however, it could come to bite him, as it’s coming at the expense of him developing his jump shot further. James will need his jump shot from this point forward to be positioned for success, due in large part to the Lakers’ offense.

The Lakers are currently second in post-up possessions, averaging 14.5 per game. 62.1 percent of those attempts belong to Anthony Davis, who’s averaging nine per game. James is spending most of his time, as a result, in the role of 3-point shooter, taking a career-high 32.4 percent of his field-goal attempts from behind the arc.

A prime example of this was found early in the first quarter of a home game against the Brooklyn Nets. James stood at the top of the key as Avery Bradley passed the basketball to Davis, who had a mismatch on the left block as Caris LeVert was guarding him. Upon receiving the basketball, DeAndre Jordan came over to double team him, forcing to pass the basketball to Danny Green, who stood in the right corner for a 3-pointer.

He’s only making 34.9 percent of his 3 point attempts, which is 0.8 percent lower than this year’s league average. James’ subpar shooting allows his defender to sag off him, opening the door for the defender to provide help defense. For example, if Davis is in the post, James’ defender can come to initiate a double team.

A potential double team will force Davis to take a contested shot or pass the basketball to a teammate. If the teammate is James, it can create another problem. James can take the low percentage 3-pointer right away or attempt to attack the basket for a high percentage shot.

Unfortunately, attacking the basket gives the opposing team a chance to reset. James should increase his practice time after the lockdown in California is lifted to improve the consistency of his jumper to greater aid LA’s championship hopes.