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The Los Angeles Lakers’ latest signing is no sure thing, but like so many other redemption projects handed to LeBron James, the best outcome could have a championship-level impact
There is a lot of talk about LeBron James. What started as an honest assessment of the 38-year-old LeBron’s performance on a given night quickly turned into a discussion of his mystique as a living legend competing against players who grew up idolizing him. And then it fell from there into a full-blown lawsuit against his estate. Nearly every other player in the league will be judged for their All-NBA eligibility based on their current performance. For better or worse, LeBron’s case always extends to his influence as a leader, spokesman or de facto general manager.
and honestly? This makes sense. Every star player informs the team’s plans to some extent, but James actively drives them. He lobbies for specific moves in a way that other stars don’t. He presented options that would not work for most organizations, but to some extent become viable. The Cavaliers, Heat and now Lakers have all brought in players specifically with the reasoning that LeBron will redefine their game. Think about it: for every Dwyane Wade, there are a few JR Smiths and Lance Stephensons. For every Anthony Davis, there’s a full roster of Kris Andersons, Larry Sanders, and Eddie Courlis. Now, there’s Christian Wood — an obviously talented and efficient big man who has yet to make it with any of the seven teams he’s played for. Great players always have a responsibility to find ways to make their teammates better. James, in particular, is often expected to save their careers.
This is the LeBron effect. Sometimes it works, sometimes it fails outright, but James has been such a strong and versatile force throughout his career that his team could be thrown into all sorts of red flags where other teams would want to Players who can’t be trusted but can’t be trusted. Still, the Lakers were right to try in this situation — not because Wood is a sure bet in L.A., but because like so many other redemption projects handed to LeBron, the best possible outcome could come from Championship-level impact.
The key is understanding which projects are worth trying at this stage of LeBron’s career. There was a time when James served as an all-powerful outlier who could make an extremely limited number of specialists play the best basketball of their careers — or, in some cases, give them careers almost right out of the gate. That’s a tougher ask for LeBron in ’21, which is why the Lakers really came together last season, clearing out some of the monotonous contributors in the rotation to make room for someone like Austin Reeves of improvisers to make room. LeBron, as always, Need a fucking playmaker.— especially since part of the deal for James now means accounting for the possibility that he’ll miss 25 or so games, during which time a pure specialist could become overwhelmed. That’s not a problem for Wood. Like D’Angelo Russell, he leaves a lot to be desired in a high-stakes playoff game. However, both could play a role in helping the Lakers get through the season and make those high-stakes playoff runs a reality.
These days, older stars who used to make LeBron’s teams are somewhat doomed because LeBron isn’t the reality-bending athlete he once was. It used to be that no matter which team LeBron played for, it was possible to land a 37-year-old Shaq, a 34-year-old Dwight Howard, or even a 32-year-old Deron Williams when they had an open floor. A legitimate gamble — expect James to not only play the best basketball they have left but also address any health issues that arise along the way. Those days ended unceremoniously with the loss of Carmelo Anthony and the Lakers’ 2021-22 season. LeBron is still one of the best players in the world, but his scope of influence is shrinking. He can’t turn over stars from the past, and he’ll struggle to fill every hole on the roster like he’s often asked to do. After all, the first real test of the LeBron effect is rescuing a Cavaliers team that was terrible enough to draft him in the first place. He did it. He ended up developing players like Sasha Pavlovich, Daniel Gibson, Damon Jones and Anderson Varejao. He had real success with Shaq, Ben Wallace and Antawn Jamison who were past their prime. This is a version of LeBron who can drag down four other players and still soar to the top of the league.Today’s LeBron is smarter, more skillful, cunning, and more resourceful — but he’s not That.
The Lakers are doing their best to adjust accordingly, flanking James and Davis with role players who can benefit from their presence rather than relying entirely on them. Even the Russell Westbrook trade was a gesture in that direction. But you don’t have to play for a former MVP who dominates the ball to get some help from LeBron. You can throw in Gabe Vincent, expect the increased efficiency that usually comes with playing with James, and keep moving forward. You can add a wing like Taurus Prince and trust that the offense won’t self-destruct when he’s asked to put the ball on the floor.
It’s easier to strike a balance when James is still so good at helping wayward talent course-correct. LeBron has also shown himself to be dumb and messed up, in some cases proving his own talent. He has now teamed up with Smith, Michael Beasley and Dion Waiters multiple times. He tried to calm hotheads and inspire unmotivated former lottery picks who, despite their talent, typically fell out of the league. He helped the space cadets find focus and keep loose cannons on target. At this point, it’s integrated into the Lakers’ team-building strategy; Los Angeles traded Hachimura not to have him become the same underachieving forward he always was, but to find a new one next to one of the best players ever. Clarity. The move worked, and the team re-signed Hachimura to a lucrative three-year contract.
All of this is to say that the Lakers could do a lot worse with their mental coaching, as their disregard for planning and lack of attention to detail cost him a real role on a winning team and cost him hundreds. Ten thousand U.S. dollars. The goal is to bring talents like Hachimura and Wood (even Jaxson Hayes, if you will) into an intentional professional environment where they can unleash something about themselves that James is There has been no such ability for more than twenty years. Dominate in a way that addresses every weakness of his supporting cast.
Wood happens to be the perfect test case to see what LeBron has left. We know how strong James is on the court. In the elimination game against the Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals last season, he played 48 minutes and scored 40 points, a nearly triple-double. His influence is evident in the way he still calls plays and controls the field. We’ve even seen that he can still command the basketball world’s full attention as the vaguest threat of retirement puts all eyes on him. However, this is a test of James’ role as a motivating force. It’s the kind of voice that addresses priorities and brings workable peace to the competing motivations of so many locker rooms. Christian Wood needs LeBron — and at this point in James’ career, there’s no use pretending he doesn’t need Wood either.