LeBron James reveals which season of Cavaliers basketball was his best

LeBron James might be the only superstar in NBA history to have four different primes through three different eras of basketball history.

The four-time NBA champion has transcended what we believed to be realistic in the world of professional basketball. James has completely changed what we thought was possible for a professional basketball player in terms of health and durability.

James' longstanding health and durability has made it difficult to grasp the greatness of his career. Fans are desensitized to his dominance now, but it is still extremely difficult to fathom how dominant he's been in the later portion of his career. James has been so talented for so long that determining which version of James is the best player.

James himself gave us some clarity on who he thinks is the best version of LeBron James.

LeBron thinks he was best as a Cavalier

You can make a strong argument for there being four different versions of LeBron James. There was the young high-flyer relying heavily on athleticism to dominate. In Miami, LeBron was more calculated offensively, relentless defensively, and technically sound on both sides of the ball. James developed an efficient three-point shot in Miami as well.

His second run in Cleveland was LeBron putting pieces of all the versions before him into one ultimate player. He didn't rely heavily on athleticism anymore, didn't put his back to the basket as much, and continued to get smarter as a passer, but instead he meshed a bit of all the skills he learned into one extremely intelligent and total basketball player.

“If you ask me what I feel the best season I had was — where I felt the most complete as a basketball player — I would say 2018.”
LeBron James on Mind The Game

LeBron says 2018 was the peak of his career

“If you ask me what I feel the best season I had was — where I felt the most complete as a basketball player — I would say 2018.”

(🎥 @mindthegamepod / h/t @HeatCulture13 )

pic.twitter.com/DdfXKhnrNs
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) December 9, 2025

LeBron could do no wrong in Cleveland

James elaborated on what it felt to realize he was as complete of an NBA player as he was. James averaged 27.5 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 9.1 assists along with 1.4 steals. The previous season saw all-NBA forward Kevin Durant sign with the Golden State Warriors after losing to them in the Western Conference finals. The Cavaliers met Durant's Warriors in the finals and lost the series 4-1.

"I felt like I could do no wrong out there on the basketball court, offensively and defensively. I felt no flaws in my game. I felt like every time I stepped out on the floor I really could do everything I wanted to do on all three levels, defensively guard all three levels. I still feel that way but it was just another level of that in 2017-18."
LeBron James on Mind the Game

James played all 82 games that season and finished second in the MVP race to Houston Rockets guard James Harden. The former Cavaliers forward gave the 2018 version of himself the edge over his 2013 self. James won the MVP award, averaged 26.8 points, and finished second in the defensive player of the year voting.

James' fourth version of himself is the Los Angeles Lakers version of himself which can be categorized as his "Magic" stint. The Lakers forward averaged 10.8 assists as the starting point guard for the Lakers in what ended up being a championship-winning team in 2020.