Rick Barry: LeBron James’ Coaches Should Be ‘Ashamed’

The NBA great — who’s never been shy about expressing himself — is less than impressed with the coaching LeBron has received throughout his professional career, and Barry blames the coaches for James not playing up to his potential. USA Today has the quotes: “In a radio interview with The Rise Guys on KHTK in Sacramento, Barry said the Heat should have swept the Mavs in four straight, according to SportsRadioInterviews.com. Barry then weighed in on what he believes James needs to work on most in the off-season. ‘His shot, first and foremost, because I think that’s where it all comes down to. If you don’t have confidence in your shot, it destroys the rest of your game … Then, little nuances, facing up, learning how to be the guy learning to use your first dribble to go by instead of everything off the dribble … learning how to use screens probably, then of course the coach running more plays for him where he can run off double and triple staggered screens, learning to curl it properly, learning how to do the little things in the game which, unfortunately, have not been taught to him, which I don’t blame him for. I blame the people who have coached him over the years. To have a talent like this and to not maximize the full potential of this talent is inexcusable and reprehensible to me and the coaches who have had him should be ashamed of themselves.'”