James Worthy made an appearance on the latest episode of All The Smoke podcast. While speaking to Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, Worthy spoke about his expectations from the Los Angeles Lakers for the upcoming season. While stating that LeBron James could be making one of his final runs, the Hall-Of-Famer also regarded Anthony Davis as the leader of the squad.
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For unknown reasons, James Worthy does not seem to be a huge fan of LeBron James. Two months ago, the 62-year-old even implied that the King didn’t deserve a statue outside the arena in Los Angeles.
As seen in the previous campaign, James is still pretty much the formidable force that he’s always been. However, Worthy believes that the four-time MVP is gearing up for one of his “last runs”.
James Worthy labels Anthony Davis as the leader of the Los Angeles Lakers
James Worthy lauded the Purple & Gold for their run to the 2023 Western Conference Finals. Further, the 1988 Finals MVP revealed his expectations from Darvin Ham’s boys.
As per Worthy, alongside the Golden State Warriors, the Denver Nuggets, and the Phoenix Suns, the California side also presents themselves a great chance to come out of the Western Conference. As surprising as it sounds, the NBA icon believed that Anthony Davis was the team’s leader and not LeBron James. In fact, “Big Game James” is of the opinion that this could be the 6ft 9” forward’s “last run”.
“I feel that this is like, LeBron’s, one of his last runs. But I think it’s going to be up to what AD wants to do. LeBron is LeBron, but it’s AD’s team… I feel really good,” Worthy said.
Worthy joins the likes of several other analysts and enthusiasts who believe that AD will play a crucial role in the Lakers’ success. Over the past few seasons, ‘The Brow’ has been riddled with injuries. When healthy, the former Kentucky Wildcat is just about unstoppable. Hence, Davis being able to suit up for a majority of the games will alone be beneficial to LAL.
Why does James Worthy not believe that LeBron James could be rewarded with a statue in LA?
LeBron James is one of the greatest players ever. The man has won four MVPs, made it to 10 Finals, won four of them, and lifted the Finals MVP four times. While he certainly is going to be inducted into the NBA Hall-Of-Fame, James Worthy is not too sure that the Lakers would reward him with a statue of his own.
According to the Lakers legend, LeBron ticks all the boxes, but hasn’t been in LA long enough to be rewarded with such a prestigious gesture,
“It depends on what he does here out,” Worthy said. “Personally — and I think he’d agree — he hasn’t been here long enough.”
Currently, there are a total of six statues outside the Crypto.com Arena. The franchise has also disclosed that Kobe Bryant’s legacy will also be remembered, making it a total of seven statues. Bron could get himself a statue considering that he dons the Purple & Gold for at least a few more years.
