Lakers Fan Shows The Unfair Narrative About LeBron James By Comparing Him With Wilt Chamberlain

A Lakers fan compared LeBron James' tenure with the Lakers to that of Wilt Chamberlain to show that the former is being judged unfairly.

4 Min Read

Credit: Fadeaway World

  • Lakers owner Jeanie Buss recently stated that LeBron James will get his jersey retired by the Lakers
  • Not everyone in Laker land has fully embraced James yet and there was some pushback over it
  • One fan highlighted how unfair that is by comparing him with Wilt Chamberlain

Normally when a player leads a team to a championship, they tend to be adored by the fanbase for it. That hasn’t necessarily been the case for LeBron James with the Los Angeles Lakers, however.

When owner Jeanie Buss confirmed that James’ jersey would be retired by the team, some fans weren’t happy about it as they felt he hadn’t done enough yet. A Reddit user and Laker fan, u/LonzoBBBall, pointed out just how absurd that was by comparing what LeBron has done with the Lakers to what Wilt Chamberlain had done.

Not to mention LeBron has 2,000 more points as a Laker in 60 less games
by u/LonzoBBBall in lakers

LeBron has averaged 27.4 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 8.0 APG, 1.2 SPG, and 0.7 BPG as a Laker, while Wilt had put up 17.7 PPG, 19.2 RPG, and 4.2 APG in his five seasons with them.

Looking at their stats might not be the best way to compare these two, however. They had separate roles in the sense that Chamberlain had to focus on rebounding and defense while LeBron’s focus has been on the offensive end. They both performed at a very high level, though and that’s what matters.

One area where Wilt does have a clear edge is that he went to four Finals with the Lakers, but he did only win one title and for the Lakers, titles are what matters, not finishing second.

We also compared the careers of these two icons with the Lakers last year and came to the conclusion that James should get his jersey retired by them. When that happens, he will join Chamberlain and Pete Maravich as the only players to get their jerseys retired by three teams.


Could LeBron Get Both His Numbers Retired By The Lakers?

What might complicate matters a little bit here is that LeBron has worn both No. 6 and No. 23 with the Lakers. He wore six the last two seasons but is switching back to 23 next season, having previously worn it in his first three campaigns with the team.

Kobe Bryant did get both his numbers retired, but he’s obviously a very different case than LeBron. There are arguments to be made, though for both. He won that championship in 2020 when wearing 23, but he became the all-time leading scorer in NBA history while wearing six. Buss was asked about both jerseys being retired but she stated that it is a conversation for another day.

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Gautam Varier is a staff writer and columnist for Fadeaway World from Mumbai, India. He graduated from Symbiosis International University with a Master of Business specializing in Sports Management in 2020. This educational achievement enables Gautam to apply sophisticated analytical techniques to his incisive coverage of basketball, blending business acumen with sports knowledge.Before joining Fadeaway World in 2022, Gautam honed his journalistic skills at Sportskeeda and SportsKPI, where he covered a range of sports topics with an emphasis on basketball. His passion for the sport was ignited after witnessing the high-octane offense of the Steve Nash-led Phoenix Suns. Among the Suns, Shawn Marion stood out to Gautam as an all-time underrated NBA player. Marion’s versatility as a defender and his rebounding prowess, despite being just 6’7”, impressed Gautam immensely. He admired Marion’s finishing ability at the rim and his shooting, despite an unconventional jump shot, believing that Marion’s skill set would have been even more appreciated in today’s NBA.This transformative experience not only deepened his love for basketball but also shaped his approach to sports writing, enabling him to connect with readers through vivid storytelling and insightful analysis.
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