“They got Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady”: Lil Wayne is not ready to count LeBron James & Lakers out
LeBron James and the LA Lakers are still in the Play-In Tournament, but whether they can book a spot in the playoffs is up in the air. However, rapper Lil Wayne is still not ready to count the Lakers out from winning the Western Conference finals.
Lil Wayne joined Paul Pierce and Skip Bayless on the recent episode of the "Undisputed" on FS1. When Bayless asked Wayne if he thought the Lakers could make a deep playoff run, the American rapper was positive.
According to the "Lollipop" singer, betting against the Lakers was equal to going against Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady, which was always a bad idea.
“Definitely, I can see that, I always could see that, with or without LeBron. …," Lil Wayne said. "Especially what they did last year, it shouldn’t be a surprise but it surprised me. So, when you see that, it’s kind of like that they got that Partick Mahomes that Tom Brady thing about, ‘don’t bet against them’ that type of thing going on.”
Entering the 2023-24 season, the Lakers had the deepest roster in the NBA, at least on paper. However, as the season progressed, their struggles got more real. Despite winning the In-Season Tournament, the Lakers are ranked ninth in the West, still fighting for a playoff spot.
Lil Wayne was perhaps right about one thing, bringing up the Lakers’ performance last season. Even then, the Lakers went through the Play-In Tournament to reach the conference finals.
However, painting the same picture for LeBron James and the Lakers this year wouldn’t be as valid. Last season, teams like the Minnesota Timberwolves, OKC Thunder and the New Orleans Pelicans were not as valid as this year. On top of that, except for the Memphis Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors, every top-six team from last season is still in contention to make the postseason.
This season, LeBron James and Anthony Davis have bigger mountains to move to make a deep playoff run.
LeBron James thinks his health is more important than Lakers’ seed in the West
LeBron James and Anthony Davis have both been pretty much healthy this season. This is the first time in their partnership in Los Angeles that both the Lakers stars have been completely healthy since winning the title in 2020. However, they are still the ninth seed in the West.
LeBron James, who has missed 10 of the Lakers’ 73 games in the season, still wouldn’t prioritize his team’s seeding over his health. James has been struggling with an ankle injury for some time and said that his health is important for his team at this point of the season.
"I got to be smart with it. If I'm not healthy or close to being healthy, then it's not good for our ballclub anyway. It's not good for me," James told ESPN.
Earlier, the Lakers faced the Milwaukee Bucks without James but still managed to beat the Bucks in overtime. He said his decision to sit out against the Bucks was strategic because the ranking was not important to him.
"I mean, I would've probably tried to play yesterday [in Milwaukee] if that was the case," James said.
Of course, at this point, after 21 years in the league, the Lakers star knows what is best for his team. Moreover, the Lakers need LeBron James in the playoffs if they plan on getting through to the last stage.
The Lakers have a 41-32 record, just two games behind the sixth-seed Dallas Mavericks. If they continue to play great basketball, it wouldn’t be surprising if they avoid the Play-In Tournament.