Look no further than a week and a half ago against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
It’s not from half court, but with the shot clock winding down, James received the ball from Rashard Lewis about 30 feet from the hoop with four seconds on the shot clock.
Kevin Durant, initially more worried about the drive than the shot, made the effort to meet James outside the paint to protect against the pull-up 3-pointer, while also being able to play the drive, if James decided to choose that route.
In the end, Durant’s defensive work was futile, as James rose up from about 28-feet away and easily swished the shot to give Miami a 15-point cushion near the midway point of the fourth quarter:
It’s not as if James has never made a shot like this before – he has, several times.
The point here is that LBJ is the only player in the NBA with the strength of a power forward and the touch of a shooting guard.
As he continues to hone his shot and as he grows older, why can’t he add these types of shots to his arsenal to catch defenses off guard, when they’re waiting for him to penetrate?
Most of the time the defense has to give him a cushion because his driving ability is, by far and away, for a myriad of reasons, the most lethal aspect of his game.
As Spoelstra mentioned, LeBron can shoot from half court like it’s a normal jump shot.
At the end of the day, for a man who has the strength and power that LeBron possesses, an uncontested 26-to-28-footer – when mentally prepared to shoot it (meaning, it’s been legitimately practiced) – isn’t the craziest shot for him to take.
Given the amount of time he puts into his game, and the increased understanding of his shooting routines and the time he’s focusing on them, it’s possible he’ll be able to hit those shots with some thread of regularity.
I’m not saying this would be a first option for James, that he’s going to pull up from 26-feet three times a game, or something like that.
I’m just saying that if there’s anybody who has the potential to do this every once in a while and become efficient at it, it’s probably LeBron James.
“I think he’s able to do that at the end of the shot clock,” said Spoelstra regarding James ability to bomb away with range. “I think the biggest difference right now is he’s not letting teams off the hook. It’s not the 30-foot shot that he’s killing people with. It’s the attacks to the basket, the post-ups, not settling for a quick shot, but taking the shot that he wants to get – the highest percentage look.”
Of course, Spoelstra is on the money.
But if there’s ever a point where LeBron legitimately takes the time to add the [really] deep ball to his ever-growing list of defenseless moves within his scoring arsenal, it will shed light on just how far he’s come as a player.
LeBron James follow-through via 2013 All-Star Weekend
James was never a bad shooter, but turning a former weakness into an impressive strength – a one-dribble pull-up or catch-and-shoot from 26-feet, once a game, for example – would further show mastery of the game, of the ability to improve each and every skill as his career carries on.
“Me and Ray, we compete a lot,” said James during All-Star weekend. “Shooting, and other things as well. but with his ability to shoot the ball… The worst thing ever is being in practice and then after practice a guy’s making shots and you’re not making any, you know?
“So he’s waiting on you to make your shots because he has to go next. It puts a lot of pressure on myself to make shots when I’m competing against him. He’s the greatest 3-point shooter of all time.”
Improvement comes with work, time put into doing things the right way, for James. With his back to the basket game, he’s proven that when he wants to take one aspect of his game seriously, he has the capability to improve it with repetitions.
“Michael Jordan can say all he wants between the rift between Kobe Bryant and LeBron James,” said Reggie Miller after James made that long shot against the Thunder. “But if he can consistently start to knock this shot down, you may be looking over your shoulder.”
Reggie was talking about Kobe, but if LeBron can master the 26-to-28-footer – an admittedly unconventional shot to ever even mention, on my end – he’d have mastered a skill that neither Jordan nor Bryant (or hardly anyone else) have ever mastered.
This shot could be the symbol of the omnipresent and one-of-a-kind strength and touch a versatile and ever-ascending player should have.
Think about it this way: LeBron James makes every aspect of the game look easy.
Adding the really deep ball to his repertoire is just one more way for The King to stand out from the crowd.
(RELATED: James retains No. 1 spot in SheridanHoops weekly MVP rankings)
Jeremy Bauman is an aspiring shooting coach and scout who writes columns and blogs for SheridanHoops.com. Follow him on Twitter.