It’s a weird time for LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers. He’s no longer the face of the franchise, and he may not like being somewhat of an afterthought.
The Lakers have had a lot of moving pieces this offseason, and James doesn’t appear to have much involvement. He didn’t reach out to Deandre Ayton when he signed with the team, and now that Marcus Smart is officially on the roster, he also revealed that he hasn’t heard from James.
“We all have our eye on one thing and that’s to win a championship, so that’s the goal, and I think everybody knows as a fan, as a player, we play this game to win championships,” Smart said on 710 ESPN Los Angeles. “I have not talked to LeBron yet. Bron’s a busy man, I’m going to talk to him when he gets time.”
It’s not James’ job to reach out to new players the Lakers add, but it’s a stark contrast from Luka Doncic, who has been actively recruiting players to the team. It doesn’t mean that James is going to force a trade, but it’s clear that he’s not as involved as he has been in the past.
James Was One of the Reasons Smart Came to Lakers
It remains to be seen if Smart will even get a chance to play with James, but it was one of the major reasons why he wanted to join the Lakers.
“There’s a lot of reasons, but the main one: being able to play with Luka and LeBron, two of the best to do it in this game,” Smart said in his introductory press conference. “Two greats with the greatest basketball IQ that I’ve ever seen in this era. And when you get a guy like Luka calling to see if you want to come join something special that he’s trying to cook up over here. For him to say that he can really use my help meant a lot.”
While James’ Lakers future is up in the air, it’s likely he’ll at least start the season in Los Angeles. That’ll give Smart at least a bit of a chance to play with the future Hall of Famer.
Smart Talks Doncic
The bigger draw to Los Angeles had to be Doncic, who personally recruited Smart. He was very flattered that the superstar guard reached out to him.
“When you get a guy like Luka calling, referencing, checking on you, trying to see where you at … to see if you want to come and join something special that he’s trying to cook up over here,” Smart said. “And for him to say that he can really use my help, that meant a lot.”
The Lakers have plenty of players who can score, so they need Smart to be an impact player on defense. He understands his role and is excited to bring a new element to the team.
“Just to be me. Come in and do what I do and that’s a tenacious defender, just bringing the intensity that I bring, my leadership, my basketball IQ as well,” Smart said. “But just being the pest that I’ve always been.”
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