For the longest time, the Los Angeles Lakers revolved around LeBron James, but that is no longer the case. Instead, there is even talk about whether the Lakers are better off without James, and his great rival, Paul Pierce, explained why he agreed with that notion on his No Fouls Given podcast.
“I’m just going to call it how it is, yes,” Pierce said. “I mean, yes, Luka [Doncic] and LeBron’s skill set is too repetitive with each other. It doesn’t mix and match because if LeBron isn’t on the ball controlling the game, controlling decision making, it doesn’t feel right or look right. And then being a liability on defense at the age of 41, it just is what it is.
“And this is not taking away from LeBron’s greatness,” Pierce stated. “You have to have a certain team built around Luka, and LeBron doesn’t fit that mold. So when you exclude LeBron out the equation, everybody falls into the Luka kind of mold of what they need. Spot up shooting, I have another playmaker in [Austin] Reaves, like I had with Kyrie [Irving], and that’s all I need.
“They’re just missing a few pieces,” Pierce continued. “… I don’t like the fact, I mean, LeBron is the scapegoat because he’s LeBron and he’s older. His statistics say one thing, and you’re like, ‘It’s LeBron James who’s bigger than life. Oh, he’s this, it can’t be him.’ But it truly is when you’re moving forward, and you’re looking to build for the future.
“The Lakers aren’t winning a championship anyway as constructed,” Pierce added. “So, it’s best to move forward to pieces that fit with Luka. And LeBron, I said it when the trade happened. Everybody was like, ‘Oh, Luka’s going to the Lakers. What the hell’s going on?’ The first thing I thought is like, ‘That’s not going to fit. That’s not a good fit. LeBron and Luka,’ It’s not a knock on their game.
“They both could put up statistics, but as far as winning, that’s not a good fit,” Pierce concluded.
To be fair to Pierce, he has been fairly consistent about this. Before James even played a game this season, he stated that the four-time NBA champion should come off the bench for the Lakers. Pierce felt that was the only way things would work for the team, because James and Luka Doncic’s games don’t work together. He faced a bit of ridicule for the take at the time, but it isn’t an unpopular opinion anymore.
James missed the Lakers’110-97 win over the New York Knicks on Sunday, and the team is now 9-2 this season when Doncic and Austin Reaves play, but he doesn’t. Their taking down a Knicks team that is among the favorites to win the East is what has given so much more credence to this notion that they are better without the 41-year-old.
FS1’s NBA analyst Chris Broussard believes the Lakers need James to become a role player, the way Chris Bosh and Kevin Love had in the past, to fit well next to Doncic and Reaves. Broussard doesn’t believe the 22-time All-Star is capable of doing that, though.
Currently, the Lakers are 11-6 this season when James, Doncic, and Reaves all play. The trio has played better together lately, and it will be interesting to see what that record looks like come the end of the regular season.
The Lakers are in action next against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday at 11 p.m. ET. It’s unclear if James, who is averaging 21.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 7.0 assists, 1.1 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game in 2025-26, will play against the Timberwolves, whom the Lakers have beaten twice this season without him.
