Watching LeBron James wearing a Los Angeles Lakers jersey was a strange sight at first. There were even some debates about whether Kobe Bryant fans could also stan for LeBron.
It’s been quite a while since The King has been in Southern California, so most of us have already gotten used to watching him don the Purple and Gold jersey. For others, it’s still kind of odd.
Whatever the case, it seems like James was only trying to follow the steps of other NBA greats that played for the franchise, as he once said in an interview with TV host Jim Hill.
LeBron Explains Why He Wanted To Be A Laker
“I came here for one reason and one reason only, and that’s to play winning basketball and take this team back to where it should be,” said James. “I see all those banners. I see all those banners — all those championship banners — and I want to be a part of one of those.”
“And I also see all those banners with all the Laker greats: Magic, Kareem, Worthy, Elgin, Wilt, Kobe, Shaq — I want to be up there too,” continued James. “That’s my motivation, and I won’t stop until I put this franchise in a position to compete for a championship, hopefully, win a championship, and hopefully see my jersey hang in the rafters. That’s what it’s about.”
Four years have gone by since James arrived in Hollywood, and most fans have embraced him as one of their own. As for the rest, it feels like they will never change their minds about him.