National Basketball Association

Is LeBron James' athleticism or skill responsible for his success?

Published Mar. 17, 2022 8:22 a.m. ET

The game of basketball rarely encounters athletes like LeBron James.

James has surpassed even the most optimistic projections since entering the league in 2003, and now, he is two good games from passing Karl Malone for second all time in scoring.

However, James is not primarily known as a scorer, and his athletic gifts pose a compelling question: Is LeBron’s success driven more by athleticism or skill?

Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe debated the topic Wednesday on "Undisputed," with Bayless arguing that James' streaky shooting prevents him from being a "natural-born scorer" and Sharpe contesting that getting the ball through the hoop is all that matters.

"If you want style points, you should have been a platform diver or you should have done gymnastics," Sharpe said. "In basketball, you get three or you get two. That’s what you get."

Sharpe highlighted James' development since entering the NBA 19 years ago, growing from a freakishly athletic dunker into one of the most well-rounded players in the league.

James’ dominance around the rim has never been questioned, but at times, his jump shot has been seen as a weakness.

Nowadays, his shot chart looks much greener, converting above league average from every spot on the floor in 2021-22 except the right corner and just around the free throw line. James also sneaks into the top 100 in three-point shooting for this season at over 36%, showing continued improvement from range.

"What LeBron has done is that he took all of his weaknesses and he went into the lab and he worked on it," Sharpe said. "He went with Hakeem Olajuwon and he developed the low post. He developed the fadeaway. And he can shoot the 3 now."

A common argument against James' status as an all-time great scorer is his lack of scoring titles. LBJ has led the league in scoring just once during his NBA tenure.

Still, Sharpe commended James' historic efficiency, adding that he held the fourth-highest shooting percentage of any scoring leader.

"[LeBron] never led the league in shots," Sharpe said. "Now imagine from 23-30, if LeBron had led the league in shots, with the efficiency he [has], don’t you think he would have led the league [in scoring]?"

Bayless acknowledged that James is the greatest rim-attacker in NBA history, but he claimed that an inconsistent jump shot prevents him from dominating the midrange like Michael Jordan, Kevin Durant and the league’s greatest all-time pure scorers.

"[Jordan] became lethal from midrange the way Kevin Durant is," Bayless said. "And when you’ve only won one scoring title versus Jordan’s 10, it’s hard to say he’s a natural-born scorer."

But James’ biggest weakness, in the eyes of Bayless, comes from the free throw line, considering LeBron is a career 73.4% shooter at the stripe.

"How could he not have gone to the lab just one offseason and fixed his free throw shooting?" Bayless said. "He’s a superstar, and even though it has improved a little, it's still way below average."

Whether it’s skill or athleticism, LeBron’s status as a legendary bucket-getter will be hard to argue, assuming he passes both Malone and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the all-time scoring list.