There's 'growing tension' between LeBron James and the Lakers

Death, taxes, and LeBron James making passive-aggressive moves and comments before the NBA trade deadline. This has happened every single year for most of his career, so it’s not much of a surprise at this point.

Just a couple of weeks ago, James claimed that he ‘didn’t play fantasy basketball‘ and wouldn’t talk about trades out of respect for his teammates. A couple of losses later, he posted an hourglass emoji on a cryptic tweet and refused to elaborate.

He didn’t have to, though, as it’s not the first time he’s done something like this, and it will hardly be the last time he looks to put pressure on the Los Angeles Lakers’ front office without actually demanding them to do something.

The Lakers Aren’t Reactive To LeBron’s Tactics

NBA insider Brian Windhorst reports that “we’re about an ‘8’ on the ‘LeBron Passive Aggressive Trade Deadline’ time scale.” However, it seems like Rob Pelinka isn’t budging this time:

“The Lakers to this point, from what I am told by sources, have not reacted to LeBron’s maneuvers, including wearing the Knicks towel last night, and they have kind of held firm in their talks,” Windhorst said on SportsCenter. “The issue with the Lakers is they have only a couple of draft assets left, and they just want to hold onto them.”

The Lakers have a decision to make at this point. James has a player option on his contract and could leave as a free agent, but he’s also 39 years old, so they might choose to keep their assets for the future instead.

Whatever the case, the narrative of LeBron James needing more help and it always being his teammates’ fault is getting tiring at this point. As great as he is and as solid as he’s been for Darvin Ham’s team this season, there has to be a point where he’s also held accountable.