The Lakers won a wild one last night over Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs, moving to 7-2 on the season. They are indeed one of the hottest teams in the NBA right now. And the most impressive part is that L.A. has done this without the services of arguably the greatest player in history, LeBron James.
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The King has been on the shelf with sciatica to start the year. But Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves have stepped up in a big way. Luka looks like an MVP, and Reaves has proved that he could carry the load even when his two more famous co-stars weren’t on the court.
LeBron made the Second Team All-NBA last year. So whenever he’s able to come back, the Lakers could become legitimately impossible to defend. They’re already the seventh-ranked team in offensive rating, so just imagine what they’ll be when a well-rested LeBron gets added to the mix. But will the King stay in L.A.?
Rumors have been flying since the summer that LeBron and the team were on the outs since he didn’t sign an extension and is instead playing out the final year of his contract. Four-time NBA champ John Salley, however, doesn’t think there’s anything to worry about. And he explained why on the TFU podcast.
“Don’t just look at what you see on the court,” Salley said. “It’s the stuff off the court. He’s the connection to China. He’s a great representation of the NBA. He’s a great representation of health and wellness. He’s a great representation of a great dad, of a husband.”
Salley acknowledged that Luka’s jersey sales have surpassed LeBron’s. But he is astonished that the legend’s jersey remains in the top five best-sellers after more than 20 years in the league.
LeBron is still one of the best players in the league when healthy. So Salley is tired of hearing people say that the Lakers are Luka’s team now and LeBron is the one who needs to take a backseat and fit in.
“I’m reading stuff, ‘Well, he got to be able to fit in now, we have a whole new…’ Whoever’s saying this, just shut up, because LeBron is the common denominator,” said Salley.
“Everybody else needed to play together to get better, so when he steps in, they know how to play with the best player,” he added.
Luka, Reaves, and the rest of the team have thrived without LeBron. They’ve expanded their games to fill the hole left by the King’s absence. Salley thinks that will only serve them better as the season goes along.
Once LeBron gets back, Salley said, “There are no double-teams. There’s no slacking off when LeBron’s on the court.”
He even went so far as to compare this Lakers team to the Showtime Lakers. Well, because everybody on that team, from Magic Johnson and James Worthy, to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Byron Scott, could make you pay if you doubled someone else. This current Lakers roster has that potential.
The Lakers are the NBA’s flagship franchise, playing in one of its absolute biggest markets. They have 17 titles, one fewer than the Celtics for the most all time. LeBron is still capable of being an enormous difference-maker, and the franchise has always shown loyalty to its biggest stars. With so many things aligned, Salley’s contention seems valid: LeBron isn’t going anywhere.
