LeBron James only has six dunks in the halfcourt this season as his game evolves while getting older.

ESPN.com published a pair of stories on Thursday examining James' place in the league as a 12-year veteran.

One quoted an advance scout as saying, "The LeBron who could dunk on any player at any time is probably gone. ... He's probably never been a better basketball player than he is right now, though." The other noted how James had only six dunks in the Cavs' half-court offense through his first 20 games.

"It's funny you say that because a family member of mine sent me the same message you just talked about," James said. "You can look at it in a bad way or a good way. I've expanded the rest of my game. I'm still out there making plays. My athleticism, obviously I'm not the 18-year-old kid that I was before. But I can still do the things I need to do to be successful."