The 2006-07 Cleveland Cavaliers were one of the most successful teams in franchise history.
They won 50 games, had the fourth-best defense in the game, and made it all the way to the NBA Finals.
There, they were swept by Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs.
For years, LeBron James drew praise for leading that team to the NBA Finals at such a young age, even despite the loss.
Now, looking back, he took a big shot at his teammates.
Talking on the “Mind the Game” podcast, the four-time NBA champion claimed that he “made the players believe they were better than they were,” citing that as the key to their success (via Legion Hoops).
LeBron: “I mean… I’m not able to go to the Finals with that 2007 Cavs team if I didn’t make them believe that they were greater than what they were.”
Damn. 😳 (via @mindthegamepod, @LeagueAlerts) pic.twitter.com/ClBYWJCeQj
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) March 31, 2025
Even if that were the case, it was still an interesting choice of words.
Of course, James was a superstar, but Mike Brown had this team playing some elite defense.
Also, James’ scoring averages went down in the NBA Finals, and while he still scored 22 with almost seven assists per game, he still fell short.
Perhaps he should’ve talked himself into being better than he was at the time.
It’s one thing to be the best player on the team and maybe even the greatest player of all time, but players should be good teammates above all things.
No one can deny that James was the leader and the main reason why that team made it that far, but if you’re going to take all the credit, you might as well also take all the blame.
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