After Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, there was the 6’9″, 250-pound LeBron James – the 2008-2009 NBAMVP – being supported at center court by two Cavaliers trainers.  Despite putting up 49 points and providing the backbone for Cleveland’s offensive repertoire, his franchise fell short by one point.

The saga was made worse due to the fact that Mike Brown pretty much acknowledged that he could not give his star player a split second of rest down the stretch.  Brown actually called a timeout with about 3-4 minutes left – - just to give LeBron some rest – so that he could finish the game off.

James was doing it all in Game 1.  He had 6 rebounds, 8 assists, and 3 blocked shots to go along with his 49.  He initiated the offense (bringing the ball up the court), and finished the plays (he made 20 field goals).  He played great help defense – even getting a couple of Dwight Howard’s shots in the process. 

Yet after all of the highlight material that he provided, all that I can remember is the spent, helpless image of him at the conclusion of the contest.

I think LBJ owes it to himself to be the very best that he can be, for as long as he can be.  So, here’s my list of suggestions for ways that he could lengthen his greatness:

1. Get a real coach.  Mike Brown refuses to be a real coach.  Instead he chooses the let the megastar run the team, which happens to be wearing on the youngster’s durability – and here’s why.  Coach Brown (and I use that phrase lightly) needs to design plays to put LeBron in a position to score – and limit the twists, turns, bumps and grinds that he incurs on a nightly basis.  Also, by designing plays with ball and player movement, James’ passing and improvisation will be even more effective.
2. Put pressure on the Cavs to get a complementary scorer.  That’s right – add me to the list of people who know that Mo Williams is not the answer.  He’s a streak shooter, but what LeBron needs is a guy who can fill the basket night in and night out.  Somebody who puts up 20 every game – without fail.  My idea of players who would fall in this category would be Michael Redd, Antwan Jamison, Chris Bosh, Kevin Martin…one additional big-time scorer trumps a crew of above-average NBA players – without question, that’s a guy who is completely confident is his ability to put points on the board.  Having such a player will take a huge chunk of pressure off of LeBron.
3. Be more selfish.  I think we all remember Michael Jordan in his early years.  The driving, the abuse he took every game.  James needs to perfect that pull-up jumper early in his career.  Stop taking the ball to the basket and getting busted up to help your teammates get open shots (which they may or may not make).  Drop that mid-range shot down.  Save your body some contact in the process.