The future of the NBA is looking strong. The league is filled with the most talent it’s ever seen, all of whom who are aiming to take the crown as the face of the organization. Who will that be? Gilbert Arenas has some insight.
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For the last 20 years, the NBA has belonged to LeBron James. However, The King is now two months away from his 41st birthday years and probably only has a couple of seasons left. Stephen Curry did take that mantle for a bit after helping the Warriors become a dynasty. But The Chef, despite still playing inspired ball, is nearing his end too.
Arenas was asked who he thinks the current faces of the NBA are in the league during an interview with VladTV. The interviewer suggested that it was someone new since LBJ and Curry are on their way out. Funnily enough, Gil stated that he would still consider them the NBA’s biggest superstars.
“Those two are the face of the NBA. Basically the NBA is searching for the new face of the NBA,” claimed the three-time All-Star. “You were trying to give it to Anthony Edwards but I think his outside noise, she’s f****** it up for him.”
It’s true. The Ant Man was more hyped than any other player coming in to the 2024-2025 season, especially after his viral interaction with Barack Obama during the Paris Olympics. But his legal issues off the court may have pushed him further down the list.
It’s also noteworthy that Ant has blatantly admitted to not wanting to be the face of the league. “That’s what they’ve got Wemby for,” he said earlier this year.
Gil then brought up other potential candidates for the face. “Lamelo Ball, he’s done tattoo’d himself to the point where, they’re not going to put you on these American Express ads unless you’re willing to cover yourself up.”
VladTV wondered why Gil thought that since LeBron James also had a bunch of tattoos and that didn’t stop him from being commercialized. “Think about early LeBron, they put him in suits,” responded Arenas.
One player who Arenas thinks will bounce back from his “bad luck” is Ja Morant. “The face of the NBA in who the NBA was pushing was Ja. He is the only person that I can see that can come out of it because there’s really no victim. He’s easier to forgive. He’s more fun loving to the kids than anybody. He has the kids culture.”
He’s of course, referencing Ja’s infamous social media posts where he was brandishing firearms. Things got worse for him when he started miming guns on the court during games along with “throwing grenades” into the crowd.
“Then you have Wemby, who is the cleanest. Jayson Tatum, he’s with Jordan brand but he got hurt. SGA is making a name for himself,” added Gil, who is still uncertain of who will eventually take the mantle.
Honestly, SGA feels like the closest thing to a winner. He’s dominant on the court and keeps his life relatively quiet off the court. If the Thunder manage to go back-to-back, prepare to see Shai EVERYWHERE.
The good thing about this is that the NBA will eventually find its new face. The sad is that it will be a league that no longer has Curry or LeBron. We have to appreciate them now, because they’ll be sorely missed.
