Monday, February 27th, 2012 at 11:00 am  |  142 responses

LeBron James Regrets Not Taking Last Shot in All-Star Game


by Marcel Mutoni / @marcel_mutoni

Widely considered as the best player in the game, but having never won a championship, even an otherwise meaningless contest such as the NBA All-Star Game serves as some kind of referendum on your legacy.

Welcome to LeBron James’ life.

James coughed up the rock in the dying moments last night, his turnover ensuring a last-second victory for the East All-Stars, and everyone – fans, media, and even rivals on the court – wondered why LeBron didn’t hoist up a three-point attempt to tie the game.

According to LBJ, he screwed up the game’s final possession.

From the Akron Beacon Journal:

LeBron on final seconds of All-Star game: “(Kobe) was telling me to shoot it. I seen my teammate open for a split second. I seen him open the first time and I didn’t release the ball.”

“When I tried to throw it late, that’s what usually happens and it results in a turnover. Definitely wish I could have that one back.”

Truth be told, LeBron James wasn’t the only one who made errors late in the All-Star Game. Kobe Bryant missed a critical free throw that gave the East a chance to tie things up, James’ own teammate Dwyane Wade also had a costly fourth quarter turnover. But, all anyone will remember is what seemed like an unwillingness on LeBron’s part to play the role of closer (hero, alpha male, whatever …) that drives people who care about the NBA batty.

And, unfortunately, universal perceptions won’t change until LeBron James wins a title, while taking and making big-time shots along the way. It’s not fair, but hey, that’s life.

  • Add a Comment
  • Share
  • RSS

Tags: , , , , , , ,

Newer Comments →
  • http://Slamonline.com nbk

    He better. That was befuddling. But, we should also be grateful
    That he made the end worth watching. Without what he did, that 4th quarter wouldn’t have been entertaining at all.

  • CoyoteSwag

    West won right??

  • ab40

    Just retire win the mvp, lose in the conference finals. Call your friends, start the LeBron show, you can dance and sing while everyone is watching you guys beat a team that’s called the cleveland gilberts 200 times a year.

  • DerekG

    What makes it worse is that dude was 6-8 from 3 in the game! ANYBODY that is 6-8 would’ve taken that shot without even blinking and called it a heat check and you know what…his teammates would’ve been cool with him taking that shot!!! It’s clearly a mental thing for him now!

  • http://slamonline.com Brion

    Ya no one is going to talk about D. Williams miss..or Wades fumble out of bounds…or Kobes free throw. Let the Lebron clowing begin.

  • MeloMan15

    Melo was wide open…

  • bike

    Not like he had a bad night. He played a pretty big role in making the game competitive–otherwise we were looking at an epically boring contest.

  • Albie1kenobi

    On the other team in stark contrast, Kobe almost lost the game for the west when he continued to shoot tough turnaround fadeaways 2-3 times without cp3 or Durant touching the ball, while the east had all the momentum. You mean to tell me Kobe couldn’t have gotten better shots if he involved his teammates in his attack?

  • ron

    universal perceptions won’t change even he won a title

  • http://slamonline.com Brad Long

    Like everything else in his career, LeBron was amazing and entertaining as hell, until clutch time.

  • http://slamonline.com The Philosopher

    I’m STILL confused…
    What in the hell was he thinking about??
    I know that he is trying to tell us what was on his mind, but…
    Unbelieveable.
    THEN two “assassins” (Kobe, Carmelo) came up to him after the buzzer, scratching their heads in disbelief. Basically publically humiliating him.
    He’s not comfortable being as great as he is, it seems.
    King, you are GREAT! GET OVER IT!

  • http://cnbc.com JTaylor21

    I doubt a GW attempting during a meaningless game would have changed the false perception that LeBron is a “clutch” player. The only way to do that is to win a championship while being dominant in every series along the way.

  • http://cnbc.com JTaylor21

    Damn….lots of errors there. *isn’t a clutch player*

  • http://slamonline.com Allenp

    He had just taking a heat check a few minutes earlier from out on the right side of the court. That falling away bomb. Maybe he thought that after that bad shot he couldn’t take another one? I have no idea really.

  • LaKid

    “It’s not fair, but hey, that’s life.” – How isn’t it fair? He is supposedly the best player in the world, he just brought his team back from 20 down, and he is unwilling to take the final shot. Man up and take it. Make or miss, doesn’t matter. Taking it is what matters. Perceptions can’t change because they are correct. He shies away from the moment. If you want people to change how they see Lebron, he has to change first. (All my opinion of course)

  • http://slamonline.com Allenp

    Wade, Melo and Williams all missed shots or made mistakes, but none of them were as puzzling as Bron not shooting.

  • Ash

    Couple of mistakes not just him but yeah he could of threw up the last shot or passed to Melo, he was open. @ The Philospher Melo was telling him I was open and Kobe was telling him he should of shot it. I do agree, he is a great, good over it..best player man in NBA

  • LeQuit

    The issue is he has no stones. Afraid to take the shot. Nothing new. He is not clutch. He is what he is. The best player in the league unless the game is on the line, then he disappears.

  • Fat Lever

    7-11 in full effect last night.

  • cru_thik305

    thank you Brion, im not the only one that actually watched the game. its like no one says anything about wade, willims,or anyone else screwing up and automatically point out lebron. if he didnt go off in the second half they wouldnt have been in the game anyway. and then all these wannabe, self-proclaimed psychologists want to say that its ” a mental thing” as to why he passed up the shot. smh, wonder what they will say next

  • kh

    It looked like Kobe was Pissed and yelling at him for not at least attempting a shot. Even players are pulling for Lebron to step up and be selfish! At some point he has to switch mindsets in order to truly become one of the greats of the game.

  • flipnoyce

    Your time will come Simba, when the moment comes and shall you become a King it will be all yours.

  • T-Money

    maybe i’m reading this wrong but doesn’t he regret the turnover and that’s what he wished he “could have back”? he’s saying that he didn’t release the ball fast enough when his teammate was open, not that he should have shot it, no?

  • LeQuit

    “Mental Thing” He had the ball in his hands at the end of the game. Time was running out. This is usually the time when clutch players put the game on their shoulders. Yes, I know he got them back in the game. So now we praise players for almost winning, for almost being clutch? Being the best player for forty minutes and then deferring the rest of the game. The reason no one is on Wade or Williams, is they aren’t the self glossed “CHOSEN ONE”.

  • T-Money

    I don’t agree with the mentality that a designated player should shoot the ball at the end no matter what. I mean, Kobe shot two airballs in the last minute (which is pretty common this year) but we’re ok with that? He thought he had something in the corner and threw a poor pass, ok. Why is that worse than forcing a bad shot over two guys just to say that you’re not shying away from the moment?

  • http://www.slamonline.com Jahmai

    I’ve been thinking about it for a while now and it remains puzzling, but either way he played great and I’m pretty sure every single fan out there that never saw LeBron play (the others too ofcourse)and even if they did see him play they sure as hell got what they paid for. Really entertaining all-star game.

  • AQWORD

    Great game. Bron was sic as phuck & Lobe aint a team player.

  • http://cnbc.com JTaylor21

    It is what it is. In this day and age, if a player doesn’t take the last second shot regardless of how many defenders are on him or how bad the shot is, he looked on as “being afraid of the moment”. What happened to passing to the open man and making the right play?
    It wasn’t a great pass but it was the correct decision. Better than forcing up a 30 footer over two defenders.

  • http://www.borntocompete.com Money$hot

    1st he should have took the three instead of making that difficult pass. But, after that what puzzles me the most why did he take the ball out and not get involved in the last offensive possesion! STOP TRYING TO FORCE THE BALL TO DWADE! TAKE THE SHOT! Lebron was obiviously feeling it in the then end of the 4th quarter. His two previous three’s where difficult shots! He should have took that difficult three over Kobe and I think everybody in the WORLD would have lived or died with it!

  • http://slamonline.com john

    It’s a f*ckin allstar game

  • http://Slamonline.com nbk

    I’m pretty sure Thibodeau drew up the last play.

  • http://juan.garcia@computershare.com POW

    Magic said before the game that his name would always be attached to Birds. Who’s Lebrons going to be attached to? Kobe or Durant?

  • Playah-Playah

    @T-Money Isn’t being clutch in the final second is what it is all about? When it comes down to it, no one is going to remember Lebron’s 36 points, or Durant’s 36 points. All people are talking about is how Lebron passed up on multiple chances to be the great player that he is. We’ve seen it before and we’re seeing it now. Also, we will see it again in the future. Even if the Heat wins a championship, it will Wade who will get all the credit as he is Batman and Lebron is Robin.

  • http://www.borntocompete.com Money$hot

    Bron was on fire in the 4th quarter, he should have taken the last shot no matter the difficulty level, it could not have been more difficult then one of the three’s he previously took. He derserved to have taken it and he didnt.

  • stlheatmaniac

    i luv it actually as a heat fan. this is a mid season look in the mirror for lebron. he was angry after the game and i luv dat he going to the second half wit even more to prove and a bigger chip on his shoulder after he failed again. it showed him right there that he still got work to do and that he gotta stop passing in the clutch. he needs this. great players are motivated by there failures to get better. this is just wat we need for the Heat. Lj woulda came home after the allstar break smilin chillin and maybe slackin or just not goin as hard. now he prob in the gym as i type improvin shooting off his new public failure. LJ winnin this chip dis yr and this is perfect to ignite his fire for the second half of the season. thursday i expect him to go Ham lol! I CANT WAIT!!

  • Pais

    Wow some of you guys are trying desperately to miss the simple point, no need to get offended cause someone’s suggesting you’re favorite player is ever so slightly less than perfect. He knows what’s up, it was clearly his shot to take and he passed it up (again). It’s got nothing to do with Williams, Wade and even less to do with a player on the other team (@albie1kenobi).

  • LeQuit

    please with the defense of the coward known as LeQuit. Now if this was the first time he shied away for taking the shot at the end of a game, then it could be debated. This is not the first time and he has used “my teammate was open” agruement before. It is becoming a pattern. He did it in Cleveland. He did it in Miami. And now it has gotten so bad, even the All-Star game is too much pressure for him to handle. First chance, one defender. Second chance, two defenders. Third chance, inbounding the ball. Are you kidding me? The best supposed best player in the game, not on the court, inbounding the ball? I can hear Jordan, Magic and Bird now. You take the shot, I’ll pass it in. Please. Mental case. No stone and no heart.

  • http://slamonline.com The Philosopher

    THEN, Deron Williams, in closing, instictively passed the ball to The King. Knowing that that was what he was supposed to do.
    When Williams gave up the ball, my respect level grew for him.
    He didnt take a crazy shot. He didn’t wave off The King so he could go 1 on 1.
    Respect to Deron Williams.

  • Pais

    @JTaylor – passing the ball to the opposing team is never the correct decision. If anyone can hit that shot, it’s LBJ (even on an off night, which it sure as hell was not) and even an airball would have been a better result than what actually occurred.

  • http://slamonline.com Kap

    @T-money…Kobe still shot over 50% for the game and played well with a concussion and a broken nose. That’s why he’s not being criticized.

  • http://slamonline.com LakeShow

    Can’t believe the East came back! Co-Sign Pais. Take that shot Bron!

  • http://slamonline.com nbk

    Nice to see Brad Long been making appearances around here lately. Haven’t talked to dood in years it seems like.

  • KING

    IT WAS JUST THE ALL STAR GAME!!!!!

  • http://cnbc.com JTaylor21

    Like I said…. it was a terrible pass to the wrong player (Melo was the better option) but it was the right decision. I guess I have a different mindset from most basketball fans, if a teammate that is capable of hitting the shot that is needed is open, you pass him the ball…it’s that simple.

  • http://slamonline.com Kap

    It was a horrible pass and decision. You don’t throw a cross court pass with 4 seconds left on the clock when the guy wasn’t really open.

  • http://cnbc.com JTaylor21

    MJ has really distorted the views and mindset of today’s player, fans and media. Every player coming up thinks it’s his God-given right to take every last second shot and a certain blame has to fall on the way the media marketed MJ. You never see all the GW assists the guy had, all you see are the GW shots (never the misses).
    There’s a reason why a guy like AI despite being one of the most overrated and inefficent superstars in history is treated like a god all based on his toughness and willingness to take every shot.

  • MUBWAR

    wow the dude put the east on his shoulders and made it a game. but all we remember is the turnover. hate on people

  • http://juan.garcia@computershare.com POW

    That’s why they went to Wade on the very last shot for a tie attempt as they needed someone who could create their own shot with out second guessing a pass. LeBron should never have the ball in the last seconds of a game. He’s a liability.

  • Joe

    JTaylor21

    LeBron has proven that he can get others involved, but at the same time has also proven that he is afraid to step up in the last minutes of the fourth quarter. Think about it, if LeBron stepped up in the 4th quarters in the finals instead of passing it off to Chalmers everytime he touched it, LBJ might have a ring right now.

  • http://slamonline.com tealish

    It’s hard to really learn anything from an All Star game, but Bron’s decision late game was really puzzling.
    If you were willing to jack up off balanced 3′s earlier (and making them), and you were the hottest player on the floor with the ball — time and space not an issue — how do you then decide that whipping a horrible pass cross court is the best decision with the game on the line?!
    And we have guys on here defending that! Not facetiously! They’re actually defending that!

Newer Comments →
Advertisement