Gilbert Arenas was commenting on the Lakers’ road game against the Warriors live when he touched on his list of top 5 Lakers players ever. In the Purple and Gold’s storied history, several Hall of Famers have suited up for the franchise. So Arenas ended up snubbing LeBron James from his list for lack of time spent in LA.
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The 40-year-old put up 25 points and 12 assists to lead the Lakers past the Warriors, giving them a season-best record that’s seven games over .500. However, that wouldn’t be enough to earn him a spot on his friend’s list.
“Kobe 1, Magic 2, Shaq 3,” Agent Zero began. These three alone account for 10 of the Lakers’ 17 championships, cementing their legacy for the franchise. Arenas’ next pick was part of that same history. “Kareem 4,” the three-time All-Star added.
However, despite being an ardent supporter of King James, Arenas picked a different and often underrated Laker with his fifth pick. “I might f**k around and put Pau Gasol in that b**ch,“ he added, snubbing LeBron from his list of top 5 Lakers.
“Bron, he ain’t been there long enough man. Imma just be honest with you man,” Hibachi explained.
Gilbert Arenas has Pau Gasol over LeBron James in his Lakers Top 5 😳
“[Lebron] hasn’t been there long enough”
(🎥: @GilsArenaShow) pic.twitter.com/k6TlLRPNcd
— Playback (@WatchPlayback) January 26, 2025
The 2024-25 season marks LeBron’s 7th season in LA, tying his tenure with Pau Gasol’s. Therefore, Arenas’ decision to put the Spaniard over James doesn’t feel justified. Gasol did win one more ring than Bron as a Laker, but he did it as a second option behind Kobe Bryant.
Interestingly, next season, James will match Shaquille O’Neal in terms of time spent in Lakers uniform, forcing even more uncomfortable conversations about his legacy as a Laker. For one of the most winningest franchises in NBA history, it will undoubtedly require another championship run for the King to elevate his standing in the franchise’s history.
Gilbert Arenas isn’t the only one to snub LeBron as a top 5 Laker
Last year, James Worthy, a three-time NBA champion and Lakers legend, shared his own list of the greatest franchise players ever. His former Showtime teammates Kareem-Abdul Jabbar and Magic Johnson obviously made the list as his first and second pick.
He also had Kobe Bryant on there, making his top 3 rather identical to Gil’s. However, that’s where the similarities between their selections would end.
Worthy gave the nod to The Logo, Jerry West, who influenced Lakers history not only as a player but as an executive as well. He remains the only player to win the NBA Finals MVP while being on the losing team, symbolizing his hard fought battles against Bill Russell’s Celtics.
Finally, Worthy’s list was rounded up by another underrated player from the Purple and Gold’s history — Elgin Baylor. Baylor fought alongside West during the ’60s, putting up historic numbers in LA and leading the team to 8 NBA Finals. He is also the Lakers’ leader in rebounds.
Much like Arenas, Worthy gave the nod to players with longer tenures for the franchise. His exclusion of LeBron feels more consistent since he also didn’t pick modern greats like Shaq or Gasol, who served as Lakers for less than 10 seasons.
