The Los Angeles Lakers are facing a major crossroads right now. They could either try and make some moves to fix the team around LeBron James, or risk missing the playoffs and wasting another year of his career.
Of course, most fans would want to see the first thing happening, but Rob Pelinka has made it clear that he’s only going to move his future first-round picks if a superstar suddenly becomes available.
Needless to say, LeBron couldn’t care less about that tactic, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. He’s been in the league way too long and cannot afford to find out whether those Lakers picks will turn out to be good.
NBA Rumors: LeBron James Doesn’t Care About First-Round Picks
“LeBron James doesn’t care about first-round draft picks. And if you were him, you wouldn’t either,” Windhorst said on The Hoops Collective. “The reasons why the Lakers are so cautious about those picks have been documented. The reason why James has little care for future picks is assumed to be his age, now 38, and the desire to maximize his remaining playing days. That is certainly true, but there’s more to it.”
“In his now 20-year pro career, James’ teams drafted a player in the first round and played him with James as a rookie a grand total of five times,“ Windhorst continued.“James played more than two seasons with one of them, Cole, who was also the only rookie first-rounder to play with James on a team that reached the NBA Finals. JJ Hickson and James did establish a nice repertoire in two seasons together, though ironically the Cleveland Cavaliers were criticized for not trading Hickson for veteran talent before James left in free agency.”
“None of the players, respectively, had distinguished careers in the league. Wagner, it must be said, is still working on his. He’s currently with the Orlando Magic, his fourth team in five seasons,” Windhorst concluded.
All things considered, there’s a chance the Lakers do find a star with those picks, but those chances get slimmer by the day. In reality, all they’re doing is risking losing LeBron before his contract runs out.
