SI

Tracy McGrady Says LeBron James Would Get Crushed Playing Other NBA Players 1-on-1

Interesting comments about an all-time great.

Kyle Koster

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) handles the ball as Memphis Grizzlies guard Desmond Bane (22) defends during the fourth quarter at FedExForum.
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) handles the ball as Memphis Grizzlies guard Desmond Bane (22) defends during the fourth quarter at FedExForum. / Petre Thomas-Imagn Images
In this story:

LeBron James. Good basketball player, right? Well, maybe in 5-on-5 action. He's proved that by putting together a career that has him widely recognized as either the best or second-best player in NBA history. But what if he were to play 1-on-1 against some other people in the NBA?

Tracy McGrady knows what would happen and it's not pretty for James.

"If you put him in 1-on-1?" McGrady said on the Makeshift Project podcast. "I think he'll get crushed. Yeah, I think he'll get crushed amongst guys that are actually in the NBA. And I'm sure LeBron would tell you that. Because his game is naturally built for 5-on-5."

Podcast episodes must be recorded and the content churn stops for no one.

Still, this feels like a pretty surprising thing to say. Allow us to offer some healthy skepticism that James himself would tell you that the average NBA player would torch him mano a mano. That is something that is very hard to imagine him saying.

Yes, he's a tremendous passer and excels at team basketball. Yet he is also 6'9" and 250 pounds with quickness few 40-year-olds possess. He's been getting the types of buckets required to win in 1-on-1 for decades with hard drives and low-post moves. He's also not a terrible outside shooter. More than that, he's quite competitive.

There's only one way to put this to bed and it's a 1-on-1 tournament at the next NBA All-Star Weekend. Even a year from now, James does not seem like an easy out.

More NBA on Sports Illustrated

feed

Published
Kyle Koster
KYLE KOSTER

Kyle Koster is an assistant managing editor at Sports Illustrated covering the intersection of sports and media. He was formerly the editor in chief of The Big Lead, where he worked from 2011 to '24. Koster also did turns at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he created the Sports Pros(e) blog, and at Woven Digital.

Home/NBA