LeBron James destroys young basketball players with an interesting take

• LeBron James doesn’t like one-on-one basketball culture
• James called out young players
• He questions the players’ basketball IQ

LeBron James Is Against One-On-One Basketball

LeBron James is undeniably one of the most intelligent players in basketball history. Besides being the face of the NBA for almost two decades, he’s known for his high basketball IQ and always making the right play.

Needless to say, not everybody praises him for that. More often than not, they’ve called him out for passing the ball at crucial moments, as other stars would’ve taken the shot themselves, even if it wasn’t the right — or the best — play.

That’s why it’s not much of a surprise to see that he doesn’t like today’s one-on-one basketball culture. Talking to JJ Redick on their ‘Mind the Game’ podcast, the Los Angeles Lakers star shared his thoughts and concerns on this matter.

LeBron James Calls Out Modern Basketball Players

“Everyone now has a narrative of this thing called, ‘I have a bag,” or ‘He doesn’t have a bag.’ It bothers the f–k out of me,” James admitted. “Everyone thinks just because you get a favorable matchup that it means it’s one-on-one time. ‘Let’s play ones,’ that’s all you hear the kids talk about now.”

James also questioned the young players’ ability to make the right read and decision when taken away from this kind of game. Moreover, he’s worried about the fact that they don’t seem to care to learn about the fundamentals:

“What the f–k is this?” asked James. “This is not Jordan vs. Bird Nintendo. It’s five-on-five, and yes, if you have an opportunity to have a favorable matchup and you can beat your man, but realize something. Most great teams are going to send help, and can you make the right reads? Can you instill confidence in your teammates to when you’ve scored twice in that favorable matchup, do you know that the double is coming? Some guys don’t wanna learn and won’t learn because they just wanna play ones.”

At the end of the day, this is a byproduct of highlight culture and social media. The league will either have to adjust accordingly, or the players will. What’s for sure is that the game is entering a new era, for better or worse.