Kevin Durant pinpoints exact moment when LeBron James ‘mastered his game’

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Kevin Durant believes LeBron James reached his peak as a player at one specific point in his career

LeBron James is considered by many to be the greatest player of all time. One of the big reasons for his success has been his adaptability.

James has had great longevity, but his ability to adapt to the changing nature of the NBA made him one of the best ever. But Kevin Durant feels James mastered all aspects of his game quite late in his career.

Kevin Durant says LeBron James mastered his game with two new shots

Kevin Durant was a guest on Fred VanVleet’s Unguarded podcast, where he discussed a lot of topics with his Houston Rockets teammate.

Durant briefly spoke about LeBron James and how he feels LeBron has always gotten better. He pointed to him refining his game at age 38 by adding a three-point shot and a fadeaway, which he can consistently go to.

“I feel like LeBron is still getting better at his game. I just feel like he recently mastered his game at like 38,” said Durant. “Because he added a three-pointer, he added a fadeaway that’s more consistent.”

Durant is absolutely correct when it comes to this. Over the last few seasons, James’ three-point shooting has improved massively.

Prior to the 2023-24 NBA season, James’ career average three-point percentage was at about 34.5%, with an average of 4.6 attempts per game.

But since the start of the 2023-24 season, James is shooting 38.8% from beyond the arc, seeing a 4.3% increase in the amount of shots he makes per game.

He is also averaging 5.3 attempts per game, showing that his volume of three-point shots has increased.

LeBron James is showing signs of decline, despite sustained excellence

While LeBron James’ shooting numbers have improved significantly over the past few years, there is a good reason for it.

As he got older, James realized that his athleticism was slowly declining, and he needed to veer away from his original style of play, which was very dependent on his athleticism and speed.

Now, James is a far more cerebral and skill-reliant player, who makes amazing reads and takes the best shot possible.

Even with his declining physical presence, James is still a phenomenal player, and one of the best in the world.