LeBron James has heard the chirping about how he’s no longer a consistent defensive terror, and if teams want to exploit him, they’re more than welcome to try.
“Come on with it,” the 34-year-old says.
LeBron insists that criticism of his defense is of no concern to him.
Per Yahoo! Sports:
“I mean, every team has the right if they want to single me out defensively. Come on with it,” James told Yahoo Sports. “Hey, listen, come on with it. Every team has the right to be like, ‘Oh, ’Bron’s over there.’ Hey, just come on with it. … We’ll see what happens.”
And for those condemning James’ defense, the 15-time All-Star had a very specific message.
“I really don’t care. Criticism doesn’t bother me,” James told Yahoo Sports after posting 33 points, 10 assists, six rebounds, two steals and a block in 37 minutes [Wednesday night]. “I love to play the game and my teammates know what I do for them and that’s all that matters. … The only thing motivating me is how I can try to help my teammates be successful and trying to win ball games.
“So if [teams are] switching out on me with a guard and me having to try to get a stop, I mean, guys, they’re going to score. These are NBA players. I just try to make it tough on them. I tried to make it tough on Julius [Randle] all night, and obviously he was a monster [with a game-high 35 points], but I tried to make it tough on Jrue as well. To be able to get that stop for our team and then be able to make that shot for our team, that’s motivating for me. That’s all that matters to me.”
