The Los Angeles Lakers are finding it tough to replicate the success that they witnessed in 2020. Since LeBron James led Frank Vogel and co. to winning the title at the 2020 Orlando Bubble, the San Francisco-based organization has made a first-round exit in the postseason and later finished the 2021-22 season with an awful 33-49 record to place them 11th in the West.
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In the 2022-2023 season, nothing seems to be different. 35 games into their campaign, Darvin Ham’s boys have a horrid 14-21 record, placed merely 13th in the stacked Western Conference.
Also Read: LeBron James Clearly Articulates How He Wants To Spend His Remaining Time In The NBA
Like always, injuries have been LAL’s biggest foe yet again. For the third season straight, Anthony Davis has sustained a horrific injury. After playing 25 games, the former Kentucky Wildcat has been sidelined with a stress fracture in AD’s right foot.
With the Lakers’ season crumbling day by day, LBJ gave out a statement that was misinterpreted by many.
“I wanna still be able to compete for championships”: LeBron James
The Lakers suffered a tough 112-98 loss in the 2020 Finals rematch against the Jimmy Butler-led Miami Heat.
Following their 5th loss in the past 6 games, LeBron spoke about his future career plans. Stating that he wished to play on a championship-contending team, the 4-time MVP candidly said:
“I think about how much longer I’m gonna play the game. I think about that I don’t wanna finish my career playing at this level, from a team aspect. I wanna still be able to compete for championships ’cause I know what I can bring to any ball club with the right pieces.
“I’m a winner and I want to win. I want to still compete for championships and that’s been my passion and goal since I entered the league as an 18 year-old kid out of Akron, Ohio. Playing basketball just to be playing basketball is not in my DNA anymore. It’s not in my DNA anymore. So we’ll see what happens and see how fresh my mind stays over the next couple years.”
“It is way too early to give up on the season”: Skip Bayless
Analysts all over the world interpreted Bron’s words differently. Skip Bayless, who is known for being a LeBron hater, very conveniently stated that LBJ’s intentions was to give up on the season.
In the recent-most episode of “UNDISPUTED”, the 71-year-old claimed:
“It still felt to me like he was giving up on the season and I believe that’s the message that got sent to his teammates. And it’s obviously way too early to give up on the season.”
Playing in Year 20, the 38-year-old is putting up 27.8 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game. Individually, there is nothing wrong with what the 4-time NBA champ has been doing.
