LeBron James Passes Hardwood Houdini, Can We Call Him… Dumbledore?
LeBron James’ first assist of the night, he passed Boston Celtics legend Bob Cousy on the NBA’s career assist leaderboard.
It was an interesting assist to say the least. In one way, that assist was symbolic of everything LeBron James has been for the Cleveland Cavaliers since he returned.
Think about it. J.R. Smith, who was basically kicked out of New York by Phil Jackson, was the recipient of one of James’ most historic assists. To top it off, he did in his typical fashion. Launching a random, 29-foot jumper isn’t everybody’s cup of tea. It is Smith’s.
Since being in Cleveland, Smith has experienced a rebirth alongside James. Off of the court, Smith takes to James in a brotherly fashion. James defends Smith in the media and provides him with a force field that deflects the type of scrutiny he faced with the pretty much every other team in his career. Smith, who has opened up about his life while in Cleveland, praises James as a player. Talking to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, he even went so far as to wonder what his career would have been like had James been there the whole time.
James’ assist to Smith has been a magical transformation to his career. Keeping with the theme, James’ assist to Smith got him past the Hardwood Houdini for 16th all-time on the NBA’s career assist list.
Though the loss may have spoiled the accolade for James, a NBA historian such as himself should know the relevance of passing the Hall of Fame point guard Bob Cousy a.k.a Houdini of Hardwood a.k.a The Cooz in career assists.
See, James and Cousy bear an interesting resemblance on the court.
Forget that neither were the sons of affluent parents, or that both went to Catholic high schools or that both broke their hands. (Well, James broke his wrist really.)
What NBA fans should know is that both James and Cousy make a habit out of doing the unimaginable on the court. While James blend of muscle and speed overwhelms opponents and this is what makes him more efficient than Cousy was, Cousy was ahead of his time. He made, and more importantly had the desire to make, the types of passes that coaches want their point guards to make now. Back then, they weren’t even sure if Cousy’s style could work.
The Boston Celtics didn’t go on their dynasty run just because of Red Auerbach, another man ahead of his time with a fast-paced attack that disregarded the fact there wasn’t a shot clock and a play could take as long as it needed for a score. Cousy, and Hall of Fame center Bill Russell, were necessary for the Celtics dynasty to take place. In Cousy and Russell, the Boston Celtics had two players that other teams had no answer for.
On the defensive end, Russell would lock you up, gobble up rebounds and reject you at the rim. Russell was much like Hassan Whiteside, in that regard, for a contemporary comparison. Cousy though? Cousy was like Steve Nash. Jason “White Chocolate” Williams even. There were only nine teams in the league at that time and not as much diversity, so the level of competition was a bit different. Still, Cousy won six NBA titles. That’s a number James also aspires to reach.
Passing Cousy in career assists, while being a pretty flashy passer himself, is cool and interesting. Perhaps it’s time for James to have a nickname born from his passing acumen.
On a night that could have went better for the team, and James himself, it doesn’t hurt to be reminded that he’s not only one of the most effective passers in the game, he’s like Albus Dumbledore on a basketball court.
James will get another chance to show his wizardry in the Windy City. Next up is the Chicago Bulls.
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Do you see a resemblance between Bob Cousy and LeBron James on the basketball court? What would your basketball nickname be for James if you could pick one? Let us know in the comments section or Twitter @KJG_NBA.