“It’s tough, I understand that, but it was tough at times with Michael Jordan too” - Chris Broussard rejects the ‘LeBron James wears teams out’ notion
NBA and Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James has come under immense scrutiny for the roster compiled by the Lakers this season, with most of the blame being attributed to King James.
On Fox Sports' morning show First Things First, Chris Broussard spoke about how he doesn't believe that King James wears teams out and that even Michael Jordan made it tough for the front office during his playing days. Broussard said:
"The goal is to win championships, it's not for the GM to have a fun time. I reject the notion that he just wears teams out. It's tough, I understand that, but it was tough at times with Michael Jordan, too."
LeBron has been faulted at for brining Russell Westbrook to the Lakers instead of Buddy Hield. Given the way the franchise has performed this season, the blame has been put on LeBron James more than Rob Pelinka, who is the General Manager of the Lakers.
"The goal is to win championships, it's not for the GM to have a fun time. I reject the notion that LeBron wears teams out. LeBron's expiration date will be whenever he's not very good anymore as a player. Make the decisions that are right for the organization." —@Chris_Broussard https://t.co/LzFPZKsvz2
Existing tension between the Lakers and LeBron James
With the campaign that the Los Angeles Lakers are currently enduring, there was bound to be tension between their superstar LeBron James and the team's management. Even more so considering James has been playing at an MVP caliber level and has received little to no help from his supporting cast.
James was the driving force behind the Lakers' move for Russell Westbrook instead of Buddy Hield during the summer. But that move has failed tremendously this season, with the point guard yet to truly establish on-court chemistry with James.
Through 37,000, LeBron James is now the youngest player to reach every round number milestone in pts:
1K, 2K, 3K, 4K, 5K, 6K, 7K, 8K, 9K, 10K, 11K, 12K, 13K, 14K, 15K, 16K, 17K, 18K, 19K, 20K, 21K, 22K, 23K, 24K, 25K, 26K, 27K, 28K, 29K, 30K, 31K, 32K, 33K, 34K, 35K, 36K, 37K https://t.co/esbAUuLoia
Anthony Davis and his frequent disappearance from the team due to one injury or another has also contributed to the Los Angeles Lakers' downfall. This, coupled with the performances of the rest of the roster, just adds fuel to the fire.
During the All-Star Weekend, rumors emerged of King James potentially wanting to move away from the Los Angeles Lakers in a search for championships as he believes the team isn't good enough for contention.
This narrative gained even more traction when Rob Pelinka failed to improve the roster ahead of the trade deadline. There have been constant rumors leaking from the Lakers camp of disgruntlement between Pelinka and James as majority owner Jeanie Buss has tended to consult the likes of Kurt and Linda Rambis when it comes to the functioning of the franchise.
Either way, with the season panning out the way it is, the only solution might be to write this campaign off, shut down LeBron James for the rest of the season and hold a discussion on the future of the franchise and their superstar.