With the Los Angeles Lakers eliminated from playoff and play-in contention, the NBA world had a lot to say to the 17-time NBA champions. They assembled a team that looked like championship favorites before the season started, but things simply didn’t play in their favor.
The addition of Russell Westbrook didn’t work as they expected and the team struggled all season long to get things going. Now, they’re eliminated and everybody is trying to find someone to blame for this terrible season.
As usual, LeBron James’ name is brought up by fans and analysts, with some saying this result disqualifies him from the GOAT debate, given the great team he had and the poor results they got. Well, Shannon Sharpe doesn’t think that way about this Lakers season.
During today’s edition of Undisputed, the former NFL player-turned-analyst explained why he doesn’t think that James’ legacy is damaged after this campaign.
“For me, I don’t think it damages it. The league is getting better. I believe the players are more talented than ever before, the talent is spread out. You’re gonna probably see some of these great guys miss the playoffs. The NBA was not as talented then (the 70s, 80s, and 90s) as it is now. Michael Jordan missed the playoffs twice. Did missing the playoffs damage Michael Jordan’s legacy?”
https://twitter.com/undisputed/status/1511723375072272384
Sharpe might have a point there, as well as the people who say Curry carried a bad team last season and also Kobe in his final campaign, but in contrast to these examples, LeBron had a superteam behind him, and they were expected to win it all this season. Regardless of the level of talent in the league, the Lakers had high expectations around them entering this season.
It’s very different from the 2015/16 Lakers, 2002/03 Wizards and 2020/21 Warriors. LeBron and co. were labeled serious championship contenders and not even making the playoffs is obviously a huge blow for them.
