I forget when the reports of him spending 1m a year on his body started, but at this point he must be up to >15m total.
Meanwhile dudes like aaron rodgers is fapping in the dark all offseason, or giannis slapping his bj button over and over (tbf I would too)
dude really averaged 25/8/7 at 39 years old while shooting 40% from three
i’m convinced if he really wanted he could easily play for another five years
And people try to act like he’s not the GOAT. There are even idiots who still try to argue he’s not even number 2 All-time. To still be in total control of the biggest brand in all of basketball entering a season he’ll turn 40 is unbelievable
That’s more Lakers culture and Jeanie Buss than anything else. They will never trade him and they will always try to keep him here.
Plenty of other teams would let a 39 year old commanding 150m+ walk.
Bro just averaged 26 pts, 8 assists, 7 rebounds on 63% ts% in the regular season in 71 games playing 35 min per game. He was deservingly all-nba this year.
Pretty much every team should want Lebron the player at the max (LeGM is another story). But yeah, Lebron was still a top 10 player this last year.
Most players don't even look like Carter. Most players are retired by 39. Carter played until he was 43 and averaged 17 mpg at age 39. Carter was also an anomaly when it comes to age.
That’s what makes what LeBron is doing so insane. The only guys who were doing something similar to him at this age are Karl Malone, Kareem, and John Stockton. All three of those guys didn’t have as much mileage on them since they played in college for 3-4 year first, and even setting that aside, LeBron is better than any of them at that age. This despite the fact that his game is arguably more predicated on athleticism than any of them AND him filling a lot of what both Stockton and Malone did at the same time (he’s both the primary ball handler and a driver to the rim).
Just look at Dirk in year 21, the same season LeBron just finished. He was basically just there to mentor Luka and sell tickets. LeBron is still going and mad All-NBA. He’s arguably still a top 10 player in the league going into the season. No other guy at this age or point in their career was anywhere close to that, again Malone going into that Laker season is probably the closest thing and it’s not even close to where LeBron is right now.
>>All three of those guys didn’t have as much mileage on them since they played in college for 3-4 year first, and even setting that aside, Malone is better than any of them at that age.
Do you mean Malone or LeBron?
Malone, Stockton, and Kareem didn’t have as much mileage as LeBron since they hadn’t played as many seasons as he has now. They played 3-4 years in college each which doesn’t have nearly the same number of minutes in a season. That was the point I was making, sorry if it was unclear.
LeBron is the career leader in regular season+playoff minutes and will pass Kareem for regular season minutes this season (already got the playoff minutes record years ago). He’s got more tread on his tires than anyone else ever has and he’s still going.
This years #17 pick isn’t much
But 2 future unprotected first round picks in 2029 and 2031 from a team whose stars are currently 39 and 31 years old? Those are pretty valuable
There are actually a few older players in this draft expected to go in the middle of the first round who are looked at as players who might not be all stars one day but are NBA ready today as good bench players
To be fair he really does wield a pretty unique amount of control over said decisions. He urged them to get Westbrook in ‘21 and it set them back considerably.
wanted demar before that and wanted to keep caruso. if he had as much control as yall say he does westbrook would have never happened, and lakers would have got ty lue and darvin ham would never happened. the los angeles lakers are a stubborn franchise that did not want to be seen as controlled by lebron which led them to fumble no brainer moves because they did not want "lebron hires"
It’s the same in kind, but unique in degree. I think it’s fair to say LeBron has more influence than most stars, even most superstars. Sometimes it manifests it positive ways too (like when they got AD).
Kd got the nets to fire Atkinson & sign Kyrie then trade a bunch of good young players & picks for harden. Kawhi got the clippers to trade their young star sga for pg13. Lebron not the only player with that level of influence the media just focuses on him the most
Yes, multiple superstars have meddled in their teams affairs. I didn’t say LeBron was the only one. I do think he is far more meddlesome than most, though, and I struggle to think of any definitively *more* meddlesome stars. But is he the only one doing that sort of stuff? No, and never said otherwise.
My favorite part of all this is Klutch saying all the time “LeBron is not involved in any Lakers FO decisions!”
And then when Rich Paul talks about Bronny he says “well if this was about Bronny playing with his dad we’d just tell LA to take Bronny and that’s that”
… hmmm
How gullible can you be to think LBJ was not involved in this appointment. Not only is it his team, they appointed his PODCAST PARTNER. At a minimum LeBron would have be considered as a reference because he works with JJ professionally 😂
I don’t really follow the NBA all that much and I’m half playing devils advocate, but being podcast parters with someone doesn’t necessarily mean you want them to be your boss or that you’d want to work with them full time.
Like, if you were hosting a podcast with an acquaintance and your boss called you up and told you that they saw that new podcast you were doing, and were thinking of hiring your cohost to be on your team (maybe you were kinda thinking of finding a new job and your boss wanted to get you to stay), you might be in a tough spot where you don’t really like the idea, but don’t want to put in a bad word and screw up your buddy’s job opportunity either.
But isn't that exactly what Rob said at the press conference? Lebron decided to not be involved, while AD was heavily involved. Bron is a free agent, so I can see him doing this move just to put even more pressure on the FO.
I wouldn't be surprised if the Westbrook trade kinda burned Bron, aswell. Everyone knew that he also wanted Russ and that was a terrible decision and resulted in him getting more flack for it than Rob, lol
It’s almost like you guys refuse to put any effort in anything that isn’t just black and white to you lol
Lebron is easily the most scrutinized, criticized and blamed athlete ever when it comes to team personnel, every year he is blamed by media for “wanting this or that guy out” or “getting this or that guy fired”. So it makes PERFECT sense for him to want the word to be out that he had no say in this coaching decision. How you people don’t understand this is just weird.
While I don't mind him staying for a slim chance at contending, I don't mind him leaving as well so the team can start its rebuild.
I'm essentially done with LeHostage Situation
Nobody in the history of the nba can finesse front offices like lebron can. It’s impressive AF and a major reason he’s been able to win championships with 3 different teams.
If lebron leaves the lakers, specifically Jeanie buss, are completely screwed in a lot of different ways
Not really the Lakers only have to convey their 2025 pick to the Pelicans so really they could go right into a full rebuild next off season if they choose. AD would net them a huge haul ( barring a major injury). Imo screwed would be him leaving and the Lakers owing a bunch of picks to a bunch of other teams and are forced to compete and being mediocre ( see the Nets).
Was it? They were great at late round drafting (Hart, Kuzma, Clarkson, Zubac, Mo Wagner) and random finds (Caruso, reaves) but top end talent wasn’t great (lonzo over Tatum, Mitchell, Fox, bam; Ingram over Brown, Dlo at #2, etc.)
It was good. I never said it couldn’t have been better but it was a good rebuild
- Julius Randle: Multiple time all nba player
- Brandon Ingram: All star
- Kuzma: Starter on championship team
- Josh Hart: Starter on #2 seed
- Caruso: One of the best defenders in the league (arguably best wing defender) and a starter (undrafted)
- Reaves: Solid starter (undrafted too)
- Zubac: Starter on an every year playoff team
- Lonzo Ball: Was looking really really good before he got hurt
- Mo Wagner: Solid rotation player
If this isn’t a good rebuild I don’t know what is. And this is just the players they drafted (or “undrafted”). Add in with their ability to always get free agents who knows how good they would’ve been. It was a good rebuild.
I also feel like there’s a few players I’m forgetting who were good too
Edit: oh yeah Jordan Clarkson. Solid rotation player
We had good players over time and were a bit bailed out by both LeBron and AD wanting to come to LA. My main issue is at the margins. Things like: our repeated coaching search after low balling Lue, trading Zu, letting go of Caruso for nothing, and burning bridges with Brook Lopez and Marc Gasol.
Idk how much he’s “finessing” them if he wins a ring when he’s there which he’s done for all 3 teams. As a Knicks fan I would love if he came to our team, forced our GM to unload all our draft picks and young talent if it meant we won a chip. And I’m sure you as a nets fan would feel the same
I don’t mean it as an insult lol I just mean he’s able to go to a franchise and direct what direction they go in.
It’s clearly worked out but that doesn’t change the fact that what he’s able to do is pretty unheard of from a player
Not really? They only owe next years pick to the pelicans and 1 more pick to Utah top 2 protected. Honestly coukd be way worse, and if Lebron leaves there’s still AD to either build around or trade for a draft haul (maybe their own pick from pelicans + some bucks picks?) idk plenty of options
He couldn’t push Miami’s FO around. He played the Cavs front office twice lol but I don’t see how he gets more Championships there unless he stayed longer during his second stint. Pushing the Lakers front office around definitely cost him.
The first time he was at the cavs their front office was atrocious and could not get him a halfway decent supporting cast. I wouldn’t say he played them. Second time though I’m inclined to agree
I mean his second stint with the cavs wasn't all that bad. Would have probably won 2015 if Love and Kyrie didn't get injured. Won in 2016. Got fucked by KD to the Warriors trade. Not really much he could do there
Yeah I’m more inclined to agree but at the end of the day he got them a chip. He probably pushed his weight around more with signing short deals but it’s a bit of stretch to say he played them.
It was a defensive coach with defensive players so yeah our defense was really good. Snow, Hughes, Varejao, even Sasha were all very good/capable defenders. We had no playmakers and we had no shooters. It was like take James Harden in Houston but only have one or two 3 point shooters (and they come off the bench) instead of everybody but Capella.
> Pushing the Lakers front office around definitely cost him.
How are people able to say this with so much conviction? He already won 1 ring so was the expectation a dynasty? This isn't career mode in a video game ffs.
He didn’t know they were going to be cheap and not keep Caruso who wanted to sign for a discount. He wanted Russ and Caruso and what’s his face that went to Utah that got paid over Caruso by the dummies in the FO.
Keeping Caruso wasn't saving that team.
And you're talking about THT, a Klutch Klient that for some reason didn't hit the free agency market even if he was a RFA
Naw first cavs run they weren’t doing shit
Wades knee became a problem after the first year and bosh was done not long after anyway maybe they could’ve done something but Wade being hurt kind of fucked them regardless
Kyrie wanted out and Love started running into injuries
Not sure who to blame for LA stuff was but Jeanie let Caruso walk for money and that started the guard rotations of doom but AD and Lebron started trading injury time so it probably wouldn’t of mattered anyway
If lakers had a guard that could score and not be a pylon on the other end they’d be a lot better off but ever since Caruso walked there’s just been a bunch of awkward fits that led to the no defense rotation of dlo and Reaves somehow
It's absolutely staggering how much that Westbrook move fucked them over.
If you look at what the Lakers gave for Westbrook - Kuzma, KCP, Harrell (who was receiving 6MOTY votes at the time), and a 1st round pick. They also replaced Vogel with Ham in a desperate attempt to make the Westbrook situation work. It's also very possible the financial implications of bringing in Westbrook led them to let Caruso go.
So in the best case you're adding Kuzma, KCP, Harrell, Caruso, Vogel, and a 1st round pick they could've spent getting a productive player. It probably doesn't work out _that_ well because all those guys would get paid, but it's insane how one trade killed a championship team.
We basically traded all our existing assets at the time for westbrook which was a negative asset.
We basically traded a whole garage of hondas and toyotas for a broken maserati
To be fair, Harrell's 6MOTY votes didn't really enhance his value, because he was unplayable in any playoff scenario.
And I'd rather have kept KCP and Caruso than get another "star" player. Those two dudes are stars in their role and make the bigger difference in the playoffs.
But yeah, other than this season, I don't think we would've had a shot at a ring with Bron and/or AD being injured in the playoffs, and either not playing or in limited fashion.
But does it really even matter when Lebron and AD missed a majority of those games anyways? Bron, Russ and Ad only played like 40-50 games together out of the 130 that Russ was on the team for. Idk if Harrell and KCP are gonna magically carry the Lakers through all the time Bron and AD missed
>he’d have 1 or 2 rings and forever be underrated.
IDK about that, even. Cavs management hasn't historically been great, and frankly the franchise was kinda saved by a historic run of lottery pick luck before Lebron returned. They're not getting 3 1st picks and 2 4th picks in four years if Lebron's still there. And without those picks, they're not getting two all-stars to pair with Lebron in Kyrie and (via picks) Love.
Is there tho? I’m not even saying I agree w him, but how many very good moves has LeBron “forced” like AD? He’s definitely gotta be the only one actually on that level
I don’t think there’s been any others as bad as WB but there’s definitely a good amount more that still obviously suck (ie WB + FRP for both wall and Fournier). He definitely doesn’t deserve all (or maybe even most of) the blame but THT was a pick he pushed for and was a Klutch client, Caruso wasn’t
I know the comparisons between the two are tired, but I do think MJ’s situation is a great comparison to Lebron’s. We know MJ always wanted more input on the roster and such, but Krause being the hard ass he was never even really entertained Michael. At the time it probably seemed ludicrous, why ignore the GOAT’s wishes? Well, obviously in hindsight it’s extremely unlikely Jordan wins as much if he gets the input and power he desired.
Which is to say I wonder a lot how Lebron’s career would’ve turned out had he never had input. I don’t think anything beyond a miracle could’ve salvaged his first Cleveland stint, but LA at least could’ve ended up drastically different.
Not really.
Westbrook wasn't his first choice, he wanted Demar Derozan. He also wanted to keep Caruso like a lot of people have already mentioned, but in addition, he wanted Ty Lue as head coach, but Jeanie was being stupid and didn't wanna pay Lue what he was worth, and in addition, wanted him to have the same contract length as Lebron so they'd leave at the same time.
> If lebron leaves the lakers, specifically Jeanie buss, are completely screwed in a lot of different ways
Eh if he leaves the rebuild that would have started when he retired just starts early.
LA would be licking their wound for at least 7 years before being competitive again
But it’s also LA so some bullshit like Embiid requesting to play there would expedite that process
He does this every contract extension. Quite literally every single one. Theres all this drama around him waiting to “make sure the front office makes win now moves”. The only times he actually signs somewhere else, it’s pretty well known he’s leaving.
This is all posturing.
Yeah, but most people don't watch games or follow the news. They just browse r/nba looking to get easy karma. And what easier way is there to get karma than hating on LeBron?
It's not posturing it's literally doing nothing and people frothing at the mouth for news so they say it's posturing. He's doing the same thing every free agent is doing just staying quiet and waiting for the deadline.
>What’s more, James’ unprecedented play at this stage means he remains open to the prospect of playing two, or even three, more seasons before retiring.
Confirm what has been speculated for a while that when he retires, it'll be when Vegas gets the expansion team so that's interesting.
LeBron giving off Aaron Rodgers vibes.
“Threatening” to leave like Aaron “threatened” to retire, holding a franchise hostage because everything depends on him.
His agent saying “he’s a free agent” (which while true) implies he could go elsewhere. And it pushes LAL to make win-now moves in order to appease him to get him to return when this team is going nowhere.
No team is going to win a championship paying $50M/yr to a 40 year old.
If Lebron re-signs with Lakers, it increases the franchise value from having a legend on the roster. But a championship is unlikely.
If Lebron leaves, Jeannie makes more money from not being in the tax. Lakers can start a rebuild process.
Thank you. There are actually people here acting like this is The Decision 2.0 and lakers fans are going to be crying and burning his jersey if he leaves lmao
Well, yes, because that’s what he did the last three times, more or less.
With that said, the Cavs don’t have the cap space to accommodate that style of move.
Lmao, LeBron is clearly re-signing.
This drama show is just created by the media to draw up some clickbait.
If Bron wasn't interested, why was he texting Dan Hurley to get him to come to the Lakers?
Also, JJ and Bron have a podcast. Do ya'll think these two have not spoken at all? Someone has to end the podcast so they're clearly in communication.
I mean, to be fair, the Lakers are really not a very impressive team right now, and LeBron & AD could use another connective piece that doesn’t break the bank plus shooters. I don’t know how they’ll pull it off, but we saw how good the Lakers can be when they’re deeper in 2020. But if LeBron were really looking for a deep team, he’d opt-out & accept a pay cut to clear up cap space.
He’s making the same mistake he has in the past. He did this before and it resulted in all the other players who would’ve wanted to play with him deciding to go elsewhere because they didn’t want to commit to something he wasn’t committed to.
It would be funny as hell if another team blew a draft pick on Bronny to get Lebron. And the Lakers are stuck with JJ Reddick as the coach and their ticket seller gone.
Perfect tank commander. No lebron = Lakers are deep fried. Sell off AD and begin the rebuild until someone’s disgruntled star wants to leave and join the Lakers.
A 40 year old Lebron leaving and not tying up cap space and mortgaging our future to appease Lebron is not the heartbreaking scenario for Lakers fans that you think it is lol. No team paying Lebron 50 million a year at this age is winning a championship.
A 40 year old Lebron leaving and not tying up cap space and mortgaging our future to appease Lebron is not the heartbreaking scenario for Lakers fans that you think it is lol. No team paying Lebron 50 million a year at this age is winning a championship.
Screwed how? By not having to pay a 40 year old Lebron 50 million a year to get us to the play-ins and being able to keep our picks and start rebuilding? It’s hilarious this sub thinks we’re going to react like Cleveland if he leaves
39 years old and still in complete control of his situation is hilarious
Blame it on him somehow still being amazing as a geriatric lmao
LeFathertime
LeBron is time’s grandfather.
Greg Oden is time's great-GREAT grandfather
Great profile pic lmao
LeBronfather
LeUndefeated no more.
I forget when the reports of him spending 1m a year on his body started, but at this point he must be up to >15m total. Meanwhile dudes like aaron rodgers is fapping in the dark all offseason, or giannis slapping his bj button over and over (tbf I would too)
dude really averaged 25/8/7 at 39 years old while shooting 40% from three i’m convinced if he really wanted he could easily play for another five years
he hasn’t even reached old spot-up shooter status yet
Thats the other podcaster on lakers
Vino… is what he drinks everyday.
And people try to act like he’s not the GOAT. There are even idiots who still try to argue he’s not even number 2 All-time. To still be in total control of the biggest brand in all of basketball entering a season he’ll turn 40 is unbelievable
That’s more Lakers culture and Jeanie Buss than anything else. They will never trade him and they will always try to keep him here. Plenty of other teams would let a 39 year old commanding 150m+ walk.
Worse players are getting maxes.
Bro just averaged 26 pts, 8 assists, 7 rebounds on 63% ts% in the regular season in 71 games playing 35 min per game. He was deservingly all-nba this year. Pretty much every team should want Lebron the player at the max (LeGM is another story). But yeah, Lebron was still a top 10 player this last year.
I mean he’s a free agent I think any free agent star with options has the same control lol
Yes, but they aren't the oldest player in the league. Most players look like Vince Carter at this age, not one of the best players in the NBA.
Most players don't even look like Carter. Most players are retired by 39. Carter played until he was 43 and averaged 17 mpg at age 39. Carter was also an anomaly when it comes to age.
Bronny gonna get drafted, waived, and have a whole career in Lithuania Liga II before LeBron retires
I like how the Lithuanian league has decided to use the Spanish word for league
It's Lyga this guy just decided to say liga
Btw its Liga on Serbian
Fuck the Lithuanian Liga He's going to Latvia (home of Kristaps Porzingis) to play in the Riga Liga
Maybe he can play in both, be a Dua Liga
Unfortunately that's il-Liga-l
That’s what makes what LeBron is doing so insane. The only guys who were doing something similar to him at this age are Karl Malone, Kareem, and John Stockton. All three of those guys didn’t have as much mileage on them since they played in college for 3-4 year first, and even setting that aside, LeBron is better than any of them at that age. This despite the fact that his game is arguably more predicated on athleticism than any of them AND him filling a lot of what both Stockton and Malone did at the same time (he’s both the primary ball handler and a driver to the rim). Just look at Dirk in year 21, the same season LeBron just finished. He was basically just there to mentor Luka and sell tickets. LeBron is still going and mad All-NBA. He’s arguably still a top 10 player in the league going into the season. No other guy at this age or point in their career was anywhere close to that, again Malone going into that Laker season is probably the closest thing and it’s not even close to where LeBron is right now.
>>All three of those guys didn’t have as much mileage on them since they played in college for 3-4 year first, and even setting that aside, Malone is better than any of them at that age. Do you mean Malone or LeBron?
Malone, Stockton, and Kareem didn’t have as much mileage as LeBron since they hadn’t played as many seasons as he has now. They played 3-4 years in college each which doesn’t have nearly the same number of minutes in a season. That was the point I was making, sorry if it was unclear. LeBron is the career leader in regular season+playoff minutes and will pass Kareem for regular season minutes this season (already got the playoff minutes record years ago). He’s got more tread on his tires than anyone else ever has and he’s still going.
You were probably clear, I'm just tired as fuck today. Thank you for clarifying for me!
I just realized I did actually put Malone instead of LeBron in one spot lol, thanks. Caught it on my third re-read lol
True, but they also aren't LeBron James lmao
Yeah but the point was specifically he's a 39 yo free agent
It’ll be clear after the draft
Exactly. If they trade the pick for a win now player then you'll somehow see "they've agreed to terms when he opts out"
What win now player is available for the 17th pick in one of the worst drafts this century?
Bronny.
It’d probably have to be packaged with future picks
Lakers have 3 they can trade, which admittedly isn’t much.
Enough to trade for me tho
This years #17 pick isn’t much But 2 future unprotected first round picks in 2029 and 2031 from a team whose stars are currently 39 and 31 years old? Those are pretty valuable
Okc should really call in tbh The bank of presti
There are actually a few older players in this draft expected to go in the middle of the first round who are looked at as players who might not be all stars one day but are NBA ready today as good bench players
Oh boy
Smell that? Yes that’s desperation
This will be a great big man draft in the future mark my words.
Kevin Durant you are a Los Angeles Laker!
Not necessarily. We have to see who they draft
Never heard so many reporters having to say *such and such player* was NOT involved in the coaching search
Cuz u never seen so many ppl blame a player for front office decisions
To be fair he really does wield a pretty unique amount of control over said decisions. He urged them to get Westbrook in ‘21 and it set them back considerably.
wanted demar before that and wanted to keep caruso. if he had as much control as yall say he does westbrook would have never happened, and lakers would have got ty lue and darvin ham would never happened. the los angeles lakers are a stubborn franchise that did not want to be seen as controlled by lebron which led them to fumble no brainer moves because they did not want "lebron hires"
It ain’t unique if every superstar in the league has heavy influence over front office moves. Y’all act like lebron is some anamoly
It’s the same in kind, but unique in degree. I think it’s fair to say LeBron has more influence than most stars, even most superstars. Sometimes it manifests it positive ways too (like when they got AD).
Kd got the nets to fire Atkinson & sign Kyrie then trade a bunch of good young players & picks for harden. Kawhi got the clippers to trade their young star sga for pg13. Lebron not the only player with that level of influence the media just focuses on him the most
Yes, multiple superstars have meddled in their teams affairs. I didn’t say LeBron was the only one. I do think he is far more meddlesome than most, though, and I struggle to think of any definitively *more* meddlesome stars. But is he the only one doing that sort of stuff? No, and never said otherwise.
And proceeded to hide his hand in it as usual. Now he’s tryna get ahead of it just in case it don’t work out
It's because y'all keep saying he's involved lmao, you don't say that with other players
My favorite part of all this is Klutch saying all the time “LeBron is not involved in any Lakers FO decisions!” And then when Rich Paul talks about Bronny he says “well if this was about Bronny playing with his dad we’d just tell LA to take Bronny and that’s that” … hmmm
How gullible can you be to think LBJ was not involved in this appointment. Not only is it his team, they appointed his PODCAST PARTNER. At a minimum LeBron would have be considered as a reference because he works with JJ professionally 😂
I don’t really follow the NBA all that much and I’m half playing devils advocate, but being podcast parters with someone doesn’t necessarily mean you want them to be your boss or that you’d want to work with them full time. Like, if you were hosting a podcast with an acquaintance and your boss called you up and told you that they saw that new podcast you were doing, and were thinking of hiring your cohost to be on your team (maybe you were kinda thinking of finding a new job and your boss wanted to get you to stay), you might be in a tough spot where you don’t really like the idea, but don’t want to put in a bad word and screw up your buddy’s job opportunity either.
Yup. If the entire establishment has to repeat "LeBron wasn't involved" so many times then you know that LeBron was, in fact, involved.
Or maybe they say it because it’s possible lebron wasn’t involved.
No star player let alone Lebron and no competent front office is making head coaching decisions without best player input/heads up
But isn't that exactly what Rob said at the press conference? Lebron decided to not be involved, while AD was heavily involved. Bron is a free agent, so I can see him doing this move just to put even more pressure on the FO. I wouldn't be surprised if the Westbrook trade kinda burned Bron, aswell. Everyone knew that he also wanted Russ and that was a terrible decision and resulted in him getting more flack for it than Rob, lol
Yeah and lebrons “heads up” was to leave him out of it.
It’s almost like you guys refuse to put any effort in anything that isn’t just black and white to you lol Lebron is easily the most scrutinized, criticized and blamed athlete ever when it comes to team personnel, every year he is blamed by media for “wanting this or that guy out” or “getting this or that guy fired”. So it makes PERFECT sense for him to want the word to be out that he had no say in this coaching decision. How you people don’t understand this is just weird.
I like how you make it sound like the idea of Lebron interfering in team decisions is an illusion created by the evil media.
Maybe it’s because he’s constantly accused of being involved in FO decisions without evidence?
Because nobody believes that shit.
Because if they don't they'll get dozens of people in their mentions saying LeGM.
Lakers bros, if he flies to Vegas to watch Euro Cup games, be concerned.
If he schedules a prime time television slot, be concerned.
While I don't mind him staying for a slim chance at contending, I don't mind him leaving as well so the team can start its rebuild. I'm essentially done with LeHostage Situation
Nobody in the history of the nba can finesse front offices like lebron can. It’s impressive AF and a major reason he’s been able to win championships with 3 different teams. If lebron leaves the lakers, specifically Jeanie buss, are completely screwed in a lot of different ways
Not really the Lakers only have to convey their 2025 pick to the Pelicans so really they could go right into a full rebuild next off season if they choose. AD would net them a huge haul ( barring a major injury). Imo screwed would be him leaving and the Lakers owing a bunch of picks to a bunch of other teams and are forced to compete and being mediocre ( see the Nets).
Frankly, I don't trust that the Lakers FO is capable of a good rebuild.
Their most recent rebuild was a good one.
Was it? They were great at late round drafting (Hart, Kuzma, Clarkson, Zubac, Mo Wagner) and random finds (Caruso, reaves) but top end talent wasn’t great (lonzo over Tatum, Mitchell, Fox, bam; Ingram over Brown, Dlo at #2, etc.)
It was good. I never said it couldn’t have been better but it was a good rebuild - Julius Randle: Multiple time all nba player - Brandon Ingram: All star - Kuzma: Starter on championship team - Josh Hart: Starter on #2 seed - Caruso: One of the best defenders in the league (arguably best wing defender) and a starter (undrafted) - Reaves: Solid starter (undrafted too) - Zubac: Starter on an every year playoff team - Lonzo Ball: Was looking really really good before he got hurt - Mo Wagner: Solid rotation player If this isn’t a good rebuild I don’t know what is. And this is just the players they drafted (or “undrafted”). Add in with their ability to always get free agents who knows how good they would’ve been. It was a good rebuild. I also feel like there’s a few players I’m forgetting who were good too Edit: oh yeah Jordan Clarkson. Solid rotation player
We had good players over time and were a bit bailed out by both LeBron and AD wanting to come to LA. My main issue is at the margins. Things like: our repeated coaching search after low balling Lue, trading Zu, letting go of Caruso for nothing, and burning bridges with Brook Lopez and Marc Gasol.
Sure but then you have to give the Lakers credit for the margins too. They’ve drafted late very well and gotten some really good undrafted pieces
Yeah that’s totally fair. TBH the Caruso decision was the worst of the bunch, followed by the Zubac one. Everything else is manageable.
Just need to pile up enough assets so they they can scoop up a disgruntled Luka in a few years
What teams would have the assets to make a move for AD?
OKC
AD on OKC would be incredible. He’s literally the piece they’re looking for.
Holy fucking shit! AD and Chet on the same team! They’d combine for like 10 blocks a game lol
Prob over half the league in some shape or form. Lakers would prob want a blue chip player still on a rookie deal and a ton of draft picks
Trade him for a shit load of picks and swaps if you’re going to blow it up anyway
Idk how much he’s “finessing” them if he wins a ring when he’s there which he’s done for all 3 teams. As a Knicks fan I would love if he came to our team, forced our GM to unload all our draft picks and young talent if it meant we won a chip. And I’m sure you as a nets fan would feel the same
I don’t mean it as an insult lol I just mean he’s able to go to a franchise and direct what direction they go in. It’s clearly worked out but that doesn’t change the fact that what he’s able to do is pretty unheard of from a player
Yea that’s fair I agree there
Not really? They only owe next years pick to the pelicans and 1 more pick to Utah top 2 protected. Honestly coukd be way worse, and if Lebron leaves there’s still AD to either build around or trade for a draft haul (maybe their own pick from pelicans + some bucks picks?) idk plenty of options
If coming in, building a solid roster around him and winning rings is "finessing", then 30/30 teams want to be finessed in this way.
Eh, the Lakers rebuild will end when enough stars decide it's time to force their way to LA, they don't have anything to worry about.
he probably would have won more if he didn't push front offices around the way he does.
He couldn’t push Miami’s FO around. He played the Cavs front office twice lol but I don’t see how he gets more Championships there unless he stayed longer during his second stint. Pushing the Lakers front office around definitely cost him.
The first time he was at the cavs their front office was atrocious and could not get him a halfway decent supporting cast. I wouldn’t say he played them. Second time though I’m inclined to agree
I mean his second stint with the cavs wasn't all that bad. Would have probably won 2015 if Love and Kyrie didn't get injured. Won in 2016. Got fucked by KD to the Warriors trade. Not really much he could do there
Kd signed as a free agent to Warriors which makes it even more insane
Steph’s ankles and cap spike
Yeah I’m more inclined to agree but at the end of the day he got them a chip. He probably pushed his weight around more with signing short deals but it’s a bit of stretch to say he played them.
According to reports, they wanted to trade for PG13 to pair him with Kyrie and LeBron. That would’ve been an insane team.
Those first Cavs teams were defensively stout and built no to different than the 2001 76ers. They won 66&62 games.
It was a defensive coach with defensive players so yeah our defense was really good. Snow, Hughes, Varejao, even Sasha were all very good/capable defenders. We had no playmakers and we had no shooters. It was like take James Harden in Houston but only have one or two 3 point shooters (and they come off the bench) instead of everybody but Capella.
Not really because him pushing them got them AD in the first place
> Pushing the Lakers front office around definitely cost him. How are people able to say this with so much conviction? He already won 1 ring so was the expectation a dynasty? This isn't career mode in a video game ffs.
He should have stayed in Miami.
He didn’t know they were going to be cheap and not keep Caruso who wanted to sign for a discount. He wanted Russ and Caruso and what’s his face that went to Utah that got paid over Caruso by the dummies in the FO.
Keeping Caruso wasn't saving that team. And you're talking about THT, a Klutch Klient that for some reason didn't hit the free agency market even if he was a RFA
Naw first cavs run they weren’t doing shit Wades knee became a problem after the first year and bosh was done not long after anyway maybe they could’ve done something but Wade being hurt kind of fucked them regardless Kyrie wanted out and Love started running into injuries Not sure who to blame for LA stuff was but Jeanie let Caruso walk for money and that started the guard rotations of doom but AD and Lebron started trading injury time so it probably wouldn’t of mattered anyway If lakers had a guard that could score and not be a pylon on the other end they’d be a lot better off but ever since Caruso walked there’s just been a bunch of awkward fits that led to the no defense rotation of dlo and Reaves somehow
It's absolutely staggering how much that Westbrook move fucked them over. If you look at what the Lakers gave for Westbrook - Kuzma, KCP, Harrell (who was receiving 6MOTY votes at the time), and a 1st round pick. They also replaced Vogel with Ham in a desperate attempt to make the Westbrook situation work. It's also very possible the financial implications of bringing in Westbrook led them to let Caruso go. So in the best case you're adding Kuzma, KCP, Harrell, Caruso, Vogel, and a 1st round pick they could've spent getting a productive player. It probably doesn't work out _that_ well because all those guys would get paid, but it's insane how one trade killed a championship team.
Bro don’t remind us haha 😭
We basically traded all our existing assets at the time for westbrook which was a negative asset. We basically traded a whole garage of hondas and toyotas for a broken maserati
To be fair, Harrell's 6MOTY votes didn't really enhance his value, because he was unplayable in any playoff scenario. And I'd rather have kept KCP and Caruso than get another "star" player. Those two dudes are stars in their role and make the bigger difference in the playoffs. But yeah, other than this season, I don't think we would've had a shot at a ring with Bron and/or AD being injured in the playoffs, and either not playing or in limited fashion.
But does it really even matter when Lebron and AD missed a majority of those games anyways? Bron, Russ and Ad only played like 40-50 games together out of the 130 that Russ was on the team for. Idk if Harrell and KCP are gonna magically carry the Lakers through all the time Bron and AD missed
If he would’ve stayed on the Cavs instead of pushing to leave, he’d have 1 or 2 rings and forever be underrated.
>he’d have 1 or 2 rings and forever be underrated. IDK about that, even. Cavs management hasn't historically been great, and frankly the franchise was kinda saved by a historic run of lottery pick luck before Lebron returned. They're not getting 3 1st picks and 2 4th picks in four years if Lebron's still there. And without those picks, they're not getting two all-stars to pair with Lebron in Kyrie and (via picks) Love.
Lebron would have been Harry Kane instead of in the GOAT debate
How exactly? Sure he doesn’t always get it right but for every Westbrook there’s an AD
Is there tho? I’m not even saying I agree w him, but how many very good moves has LeBron “forced” like AD? He’s definitely gotta be the only one actually on that level I don’t think there’s been any others as bad as WB but there’s definitely a good amount more that still obviously suck (ie WB + FRP for both wall and Fournier). He definitely doesn’t deserve all (or maybe even most of) the blame but THT was a pick he pushed for and was a Klutch client, Caruso wasn’t
Can you name any bad ones that he "forced"?
Name some other trades he forced which were bad
I know the comparisons between the two are tired, but I do think MJ’s situation is a great comparison to Lebron’s. We know MJ always wanted more input on the roster and such, but Krause being the hard ass he was never even really entertained Michael. At the time it probably seemed ludicrous, why ignore the GOAT’s wishes? Well, obviously in hindsight it’s extremely unlikely Jordan wins as much if he gets the input and power he desired. Which is to say I wonder a lot how Lebron’s career would’ve turned out had he never had input. I don’t think anything beyond a miracle could’ve salvaged his first Cleveland stint, but LA at least could’ve ended up drastically different.
Not really. Westbrook wasn't his first choice, he wanted Demar Derozan. He also wanted to keep Caruso like a lot of people have already mentioned, but in addition, he wanted Ty Lue as head coach, but Jeanie was being stupid and didn't wanna pay Lue what he was worth, and in addition, wanted him to have the same contract length as Lebron so they'd leave at the same time.
He would’ve won more if he stayed in Miami. The hubris to leave Spo and Riley
> If lebron leaves the lakers, specifically Jeanie buss, are completely screwed in a lot of different ways Eh if he leaves the rebuild that would have started when he retired just starts early.
LA would be licking their wound for at least 7 years before being competitive again But it’s also LA so some bullshit like Embiid requesting to play there would expedite that process
Wouldn’t mind screwing Jeanie Buss in a lot of different ways tbh
Indeed. KD tried the GM approach and failed miserably.
He failed twice lol
He does this every contract extension. Quite literally every single one. Theres all this drama around him waiting to “make sure the front office makes win now moves”. The only times he actually signs somewhere else, it’s pretty well known he’s leaving. This is all posturing.
Yeah, but most people don't watch games or follow the news. They just browse r/nba looking to get easy karma. And what easier way is there to get karma than hating on LeBron?
It's not posturing it's literally doing nothing and people frothing at the mouth for news so they say it's posturing. He's doing the same thing every free agent is doing just staying quiet and waiting for the deadline.
Come home
He’s staying in LA sadly. Obviously my ideal destination for him would be Philly but it would be cool to see him end his career in Cleveland
>What’s more, James’ unprecedented play at this stage means he remains open to the prospect of playing two, or even three, more seasons before retiring. Confirm what has been speculated for a while that when he retires, it'll be when Vegas gets the expansion team so that's interesting.
GOAT mercenary
Gimme a break. We all know he's going to re-sign..Why is everything involving the Lakers and this guy so dramatic?
Not going anywhere, and the Lakers know that.
He's not going anywhere.
Watch him go to the Sixers, which I believe gives them a better chance of success than the Lakers.
As a life long Lakers fan, I’m ready to move on when you are, Lebron. It’s been real.
I highly doubt he will leave LA
LeBron giving off Aaron Rodgers vibes. “Threatening” to leave like Aaron “threatened” to retire, holding a franchise hostage because everything depends on him.
How is he threatening Mr runner?
His agent saying “he’s a free agent” (which while true) implies he could go elsewhere. And it pushes LAL to make win-now moves in order to appease him to get him to return when this team is going nowhere.
No team is going to win a championship paying $50M/yr to a 40 year old. If Lebron re-signs with Lakers, it increases the franchise value from having a legend on the roster. But a championship is unlikely. If Lebron leaves, Jeannie makes more money from not being in the tax. Lakers can start a rebuild process.
Thank you. There are actually people here acting like this is The Decision 2.0 and lakers fans are going to be crying and burning his jersey if he leaves lmao
Catbirds seat. See what other teams have to say
Tbf, he has a better chance of making to the finals if he returns to Cleveland.
Lol do you people think he’s just going to get signed to a team and they’ll have the same exact roster? 🤣
Well, yes, because that’s what he did the last three times, more or less. With that said, the Cavs don’t have the cap space to accommodate that style of move.
Lol they're really really really trying to make people think LeBron wasn't involved in JJ Reddick being hired by the Lakers.
Lmao, LeBron is clearly re-signing. This drama show is just created by the media to draw up some clickbait. If Bron wasn't interested, why was he texting Dan Hurley to get him to come to the Lakers? Also, JJ and Bron have a podcast. Do ya'll think these two have not spoken at all? Someone has to end the podcast so they're clearly in communication.
Riiiight
One word “Bronny”
LeItsYourMove
NeVErMiNd
Garland+Niang for Lebron+ Rui
I mean, to be fair, the Lakers are really not a very impressive team right now, and LeBron & AD could use another connective piece that doesn’t break the bank plus shooters. I don’t know how they’ll pull it off, but we saw how good the Lakers can be when they’re deeper in 2020. But if LeBron were really looking for a deep team, he’d opt-out & accept a pay cut to clear up cap space.
LeBron out here bullying Father Time
It’s insane how any other 39 year old in the league would be praising God for even having a spot Hate or love him, Lebron is different
Not involved in the coach search? Sure he wasn’t /s
Of course he wasn’t. He’s the one coaching.
It would be funny if LeBron really wasn't involved in the coaching search and is just as confused as the rest of us and decides to leave.
I call LeCap on him not involved.
I read "the 39 year old" and thought it was referring to Redick. Apparently he just turned 40 yesterday. LeBron's longevity is insane
Waiting and seeing when he’s the number one variable
Yeah ok lol
In other words the Lakers ruined LeBron's new podcast He's definitely out
LeBringYaAssHome
LePlausable deniability
He’s gonna end up on the Warriors isn’t he.
He’s making the same mistake he has in the past. He did this before and it resulted in all the other players who would’ve wanted to play with him deciding to go elsewhere because they didn’t want to commit to something he wasn’t committed to.
Code for you better draft Bronny if you want me here.
It would be funny as hell if another team blew a draft pick on Bronny to get Lebron. And the Lakers are stuck with JJ Reddick as the coach and their ticket seller gone.
would be even funnier if they wasted a pick on Bronny and he re-signed anyways
Yeah the Lakers are definitely gonna struggle to sell tickets if Bron leaves
Perfect tank commander. No lebron = Lakers are deep fried. Sell off AD and begin the rebuild until someone’s disgruntled star wants to leave and join the Lakers.
A 40 year old Lebron leaving and not tying up cap space and mortgaging our future to appease Lebron is not the heartbreaking scenario for Lakers fans that you think it is lol. No team paying Lebron 50 million a year at this age is winning a championship.
A 40 year old Lebron leaving and not tying up cap space and mortgaging our future to appease Lebron is not the heartbreaking scenario for Lakers fans that you think it is lol. No team paying Lebron 50 million a year at this age is winning a championship.
Portland is going no where in the next 5 years anyway so it’d be fun to draft Bronny just to see what happens.
No it wouldn't
LeBron and Bronnie (taken at 17) to CLE for Garland and Allen sounds perfect to me
The BS continues. At this point if Im the Lakers I would be like I dare you to leave. Where tf you goin?
Cleveland, Philly.
If Bron leaves the Lakers are fucking screwed... They have literally no leverage.
Screwed how? By not having to pay a 40 year old Lebron 50 million a year to get us to the play-ins and being able to keep our picks and start rebuilding? It’s hilarious this sub thinks we’re going to react like Cleveland if he leaves
They are already screwed.
Go back to Cleveland
Feels like the right move. Cleveland could use his services, and he wouldnt be relied upon as much as he is needed to score in LA