Getty LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers.
The greatest of all-time debate usually revolves around two players: LeBron James and Michael Jordan. But is it possible the Dallas Mavericks might add a name to the list? Maybe not quite yet, but Luka Doncic has the chance to be on a shortlist that includes GOAT also-rans, including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Wilt Chamberlain, and Tim Duncan.
But according to NBA legend Tim Hardaway, Sr., Doncic is already better at 23 than LeBron James was at the same age. Speaking in an exclusive interview with Sports Lens, Hardaway marveled at the Mavericks superstar’s otherworldly talent.
“Who’s better at age 23. I will take Luka at 23. What he’s doing now, his jump shot. But we have to remember, Luka has been playing professional basketball since he was the age of 16. He’s been playing professional basketball. He’s been playing against grown men. LeBron just started playing against grown men at 18. Then he had to figure it out. That took him about 3 years.”
Comparing James and Doncic’s Career By Age 23
Hardaway noted Doncic’s jump shot as a reason the Mavs superstar has the edge over James. By his age-23 season, LeBron had logged five seasons, entering the NBA after graduating high school as an 18-year-old phenom. And over those first five seasons, James had a true shooting rate of 54.6 percent, which flirted with elite, even at his young age. Doncic, on the other hand, has a true shooting rate of 57.8 percent, highlighting how similar the two players shot as youngsters.
But nonetheless, Hardaway was adamant about his stance.
“I will stay right now, looking back, 23 and 23. What Luka is doing? Yeah, I think that he’s doing it better than what LeBron was doing.”
But what about Hardaway’s note that James had to adjust to playing against “grown men”? One way we might measure that is by accounting for playoff appearances. Doncic led the Mavs in his first playoffs at age 20, LeBron one year later, at age 21. But remarkably, both players appeared in their first respective Conference Finals at age 22. And for both players, the team’s success was largely on their shoulders: James had a 98th-percentile usage rate in 2006-07; Doncic’s was in the 100th percentile during last season’s Western Conference Finals run.
That usage rate hasn’t changed this season for Doncic. It’s something head coach Jason Kidd spoke about after losing to the Washington Wizards last week.
Jason Kidd Issues Dire Health Warning on Doncic
If the season ended today, Doncic’s usage rate would be the third-highest in NBA history. In short, the Mavs have ridden Doncic during the early part of the season, to middling results. But according to Kidd, it could get even worse.
“Asked Jason Kidd about Luka’s insane usage rate to start the season. It’s a concern. ‘People will say he’s 23,’ Kidd said. ‘But, he’s human.’ At this rate, Kidd said, Doncic may hit a physical/mental wall around Christmas,” DC-based reporter David Aldridge tweeted Thursday.
It’s unclear how the Mavericks expect to get around that harrowing fact. Could they pull off a trade to get Doncic some help? Do they hope and pray Josh Green and Christian Wood continue playing well? All options should be on the table.