“LeBron James set off the player empowerment era with the Heat”: JJ Redick blames Lakers star for kicking off the player-led super-team era in the NBA

LeBron James is usually credited (or blamed if you want to look at in that way) for kicking off the super-team era in the NBA, but as of late there’s beens some debate.

Super-teams in the NBA have come in various shapes and forms. From the 2010-14 Miami Heat to the 2016-19 Golden State Warriors to now where we have the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Lakers, the league is no stranger to the assembly of teams that seem like they’d be impossible to beat.

As to who started the culture of super-teams forming, there’s many different ways you could look at it. Most people like to point at LeBron as the Miami squad he joined was the NBA’s first taste of multiple stars choosing to play together to win a title. Others look at the Boston Celtics teams with Rajon Rondo, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen.

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JJ Redick Sides With Notion That LeBron James Started Super-team Era

While Redick’s old Clipper teammate Blake Griffin thinks that LeBron wasn’t at fault for creating a super-team culture in the league, the sharpshooter definatly disagreed.

It all depends on how you look at the formation of the Celtics and Heat teams that people refer to as super-teams. Redick argues that the Boston team was created through front-office wizardry by Danny Ainge, not something that was player controlled.

Those players didn’t actively decide that they were all going to come down to Boston and link up to win a title. The front office made it happen and that meant that it wasn’t really a move that empowered the players.

Meanwhile with LeBron, Wade, and Bosh it was very evident that the move was made entirely by the players. LeBron had a whole broadcast to voice which team he’d be switching over to. The trio had agreed to play together in Miami before so that they could reach elite championship status (which they did). Here’s what Redick had to say:

“The Celtics did it by front office, right? It wasn’t — the LeBron thing sort of set off this player empowerment era. By linking up with D-Wade (Dwyane Wade) and Chris Bosh, and we’re all going to go to the same place together, having these conversations behind closed doors with USA Basketball, whatever it may be. Whereas with the Celtics, it was Danny Ainge the mastermind, up in the front office, putting up the superteam.”

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