LeBron James made a comment after the Cleveland Cavaliers’ loss to the Golden State Warriors on Sunday night that is going to stick with him no matter which team goes on to win the NBA championship.
“I feel confident because I’m the best player in the world – that simple.”
From a guy who typically redirects praise onto his teammates and rarely compliments himself like that, the remark came as a surprise. After LeBron’s Game 5 press conference concluded, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com asked him to elaborate.
“It’s all about me putting in the work,” James explained. “It’s just basically saying, like I always say, I feel like I’m the MVP every night. I feel like what I’m capable of doing in this league is the one of the best if not the best.”
When Berger mentioned that boasting usually isn’t LeBron’s style, the Cavs star agreed.
“Nah, it’s not,” he said. “But it came out.”
Berger went on to note that LeBron was smiling “sheepishly” as he left the arena with longtime friend and business partner Maverick Carter. You have to wonder if he regrets what he said, especially with the Cavs trailing 3-2 and on the brink of elimination.
As we noted on Sunday, LeBron’s postgame reflection likely had a lot to do with the “secret motivation” he said has been driving him throughout the postseason. The theory LB presented last week makes even more sense now.
