SteemSports Presenter:
SteemSports Editor:
It has been quite the season for the Los Angeles Lakers and Lebron James. We are now just about 15 games away from the start of the NBA Playoffs and it appears that the Lakers and James will be no where to be found. It was just last summer when the King signed a 4 year free agent contract with the Lakers and the city was rejoicing.
But as good as the signing looked on paper, it has been a disaster season for the purple and gold. The Lakers are no were near the 8th and final seed in the Western Conference. What a slap in the face to the fans and organization. The Lakers were supposed to challenge the Golden State Warrior for a shot at the NBA Finals, but unfortunately, they aren't even challenging the Spurs or Clippers for the 7th or 8th seed.
Lebron James just passed Michael Jordan this week for the 4th all-time leading scorer in the league. But in that historic performance, the Lakers lost, AGAIN. They are now 6 games UNDER .500 and it is the worst season for a Lebron James led team in over a decade. James is putting up nice numbers this year but they are no where near as good a James Harden's of the Houston Rockets.
Offensively, James remains near the top of the league. But defensively, he has been on the worst in the NBA for several years in a row.
Here is some food for thought. Lebron James is 34 years old and is about to have a losing record for the season and miss the playoffs while putting up some of the worst defensive numbers in the league. But when Michael Jordan was 34 years old, he won his 6th NBA Title in 6 chances, won his 6th NBA Finals MVP, never was forced to a game 7, and made first team all-defense.
The G.O.A.T. case is closed.
But enough about Lebron. Let's talk about the bad news that the Laker Nation got this weekend. Young star Brandon Ingram was ruled out for the rest of the season. Ingram was a high draft pick from Duke University and was going to be the savior of the Lakers franchise. But he got off to a slow star and the expectations were tempered. And then something magical happened with Ingram this year...He became the best player on the team after the All-Star break.
Brandon Ingram exploded for some monster nights and he finally looked like the prospect that the Lakers had drafted a couple years ago. The combination of Ingram, Kuzma, and Ball looks like a very bright future for L.A. but Lebron James doesn't seem sold on the youth.
We know and now have to accept that the Lakers first season with Lebron James was simply pathetic. It was awful and even led fans to chanting, "We Want Kobe" the last few games. But can Lebron James win over the city? Can they land Anthony Davis this summer and a big free agent like Kyrie Irving or Kevin Durant? If they do, it will be a lot of fun to watch. But if they don't, Lebron James legacy will be forever greatly damaged.
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