Admittedly, “intelligent” is not exactly the first thing that comes to mind when asked to describe Los Angeles Lakers big man JaVale McGee. Unfortunately for the 30-year-old, his vast collection of on-court bloopers and blunders – all of which have been caught on camera and picked on relentlessly – makes it difficult for some people to take McGee seriously.

Speaking to Sam Alipour of ESPN, McGee recently lashed out at his critics, claiming that he is much smarter than people give him credit for. In fact, in his mind, the two-time NBA champion has elevated his game over the past couple of years.

“I'm definitely a smarter player than I was, especially defensively,” he claimed. “I used to be a wait-at-the-rim big, more of a Rudy Gobert-type of player. Going to Golden State, I really fine-tuned everything on defense, which is important because the NBA is moving away from standard bigs and going toward bigs that can switch and things like that.”

McGee also addressed the elephant in the room. According to the 7-foot center, it would be unfair for people to judge him based solely on how the media has chosen to portray him.

“I feel like people think that I have mental lapses and I'm injury-prone, which isn't true,” McGee said. “You just don't know me. You're watching TNT and think it's real.”

There's obviously a lot more to McGee than just being a walking meme. He did turn his back on a chance for a three-peat with arguably the best NBA team ever assembled, to play alongside one of the greatest to ever play the sport in LeBron James. Surely, this is no longer a mere coincidence; McGee is a desirable big and truly brings a lot to the table for the Lakers.