LeBron James was the hero of the night in LA’s 106-103 win over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday. Besides dropping 31 points and a season-high 11 assists, James stepped up to close the game down the stretch and even waved off Darvin Ham’s play to take control in the closing seconds. On Thursday, the moment went vial as Lakers fans prepared for the next tournament game.
LeBron waved off Darvin Ham 😂
We all know who the real head coach is 👑 pic.twitter.com/GX0JSGZJ6l
— Basketball Forever (@bballforever_) December 7, 2023
For anybody who has followed LeBron’s career, this is hardly a new practice for him. During his stints in Miami and Cleveland, LeBron was calling the shots on the court and often disregarded the coach’s plan to take matters into his own hands. In this case, you can’t say anything against James considering the Lakers won the game by following his lead. Not even Ham seemed to have a problem with the moment and even referred to James as the “best quarterback in the league” after the game.
Truth be told, the Lakers were probably better off following LeBron’s lead than Darvin Ham’s, but that’s not surprising news considering LeBron is notorious for his basketball IQ.
LeBron Is In Full Control
At this point, there is no doubt that LeBron James has the ultimate authority in the Lakers’ locker room. As a 4x champion, 4x MVP, 19x All-Star, and 19x All-NBA player, James has more than earned the right to call the shots and he’s proven time and time again that he’s capable of making the right plays both on and off the floor. So while the power of superstars usually has limits, LeBron is an exception given his status as one of the all-time greats. Since his arrival to the Lakers in 2018, he’s pretty much been running the team alongside GM Rob Pelinka to varying degrees of success.
In 2019, he personally oversaw the trade for Anthony Davis and then helped build the roster that won the 2020 bubble championship. Of course, LeBron also played a role in the acquisition of Russell Westbrook, which nearly ruined everything for the Lakers. This season, the Lakers are still figuring out how they stack up in the Western Conference but LeBron James is probably the biggest reason that the team has some life right now, so good on Darvin Ham for letting him cook and staying out of his way.
Lakers Are Fighting Hard
The Lakers have had a pretty up-and-down season so far, with some bad losses and really convincing wins. But at 13-9 on the season, this is certainly a better start than last time, when they opened at 2-10 as one of the worst teams in the league. In the aftermath of the Westbrook trade, the Lakers finally got some depth and shooting to support their two stars and the change was almost instant.
Now, with players such as Jarred Vanderbilt, Rui Hachimura, D’Angelo Russell, and Taurean Prince, the Lakers are deep, flexible, and able to adjust to any matchup on the fly. This week, they’ll get the chance to prove themselves for the in-season tournament semi-finals but the goal isn’t to stop there. Thanks to another brilliant season by LeBron, the Purple and Gold are eyeing a Larry O’Brien trophy and they have a legitimate chance to pull it off for the first time in three years.
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