LeBron James practiced with the Los Angeles Lakers‘ G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers, last week as he worked towards making his long-awaited season debut. James had been assigned to South Bay on Wednesday, and their head coach, Zach Guthrie, recently spoke to the media about what it was like to have the icon at their practice sessions.
“To have the greatest player of all time join your practice, first and foremost, what an opportunity for each and every one of us to be a part of that,” Guthrie said, via Raj Chipalu. “To just be a small part of his journey, his 23rd season. Getting him back to health and getting him back to playing with the Lakers, it’s an unbelievable experience.
“And something unbelievable for me, as I’m typing up my practice plan, to type in LeBron James is pretty crazy,” Guthrie continued. “And for all of our guys, what an unbelievable experience. And I thought the biggest thing, too is, I talked to them about the two days of practice.
“I was like, look at this dude’s practice habits,” Guthrie added. “Look at how he’s the first one in, how he approaches it, how his mind is completely locked in, completely dialed, and completely focused. His prep beforehand and after. How he takes care of his body is incredible. So, there’s a lot to learn and a lot for our guys to take from that, in addition to the wonderful experience that they have.”
James, who hasn’t played this season due to sciatica, was part of two practice sessions with South Bay, and it would have been quite incredible for Guthrie and the players to have him around. There’s a lot that you can learn from watching how he operates behind the scenes.
While you’d imagine they’d have loved having James around for an extended period of time, he was reassigned to the Lakers on Sunday. Austin Reaves wanted the 40-year-old to play a game in the G League, but it wasn’t to be.
James will instead be a full participant at the Lakers’ practice on Monday. There appears to be a good chance we’ll see the 21-time All-Star play his first game of the season against the Utah Jazz at Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday.
The Lakers could also decide to err on the side of caution and have James complete a couple more practice sessions before sending him out on the court. They have a four-day break after that contest on Tuesday, as they take on the Jazz again at the Delta Center on Sunday. Time will tell what head coach JJ Redick and his staff believe is best.
The Lakers certainly are not in a position where they need to rush James back. They have gotten off to an excellent 10-4 start despite his absence. Reaves and Luka Doncic have shone, and it will be interesting to see how quickly everyone adapts once James is in the lineup. There might be some struggles early on, but they should be fine in the long run.
James will also make history whenever he steps out onto the court this season. He’ll become the first player ever to play a 23rd season in the NBA, and it’s a testament to his greatness that we are all expecting him to shine on the court.
Getting back to Guthrie, he is currently in his second season as head coach of South Bay after being hired in September 2024. He has led the team to a perfect 3-0 record in the Showcase Cup so far.
