LeBron James has played with a lot of terrific players in his career. Some of them include Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh with the Miami Heat, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and now, Anthony Davis with the Los Angeles Lakers. Looking back, however, James could have very well started his Hollywood chapter by playing alongside two of the game's bright young stars if it weren't for then Lakers president Magic Johnson. Those rising stars are Jayson Tatum and D'Angelo Russell.
So how is it Magic's fault? The video below from ClutchPoints investigates how this alternate universe could have unfolded:
Looking back, all of this apparently started with a single video.
Remember the time that D'Angelo Russell snitched on Nick Young? Russell posted a video of himself recording Swaggy P, who was talking about his secret affairs. That, of course, ruined his relationship with then-fiance Iggy Azalea.
Russell's public image also took a hit from his immature behavior. Apparently, this also caught the eye of Magic Johnson.
Fast-forward to the summer of 2017. D-Lo didn't quite live up to the billing as a no. 2 overall pick just yet through his first two years in the league. Likewise, Johnson also had his eyes on UCLA star Lonzo Ball in the upcoming 2017 draft.
The 5-time champion packaged Russell that summer to the Brooklyn Nets in a deal that allowed them to off-load Timofey Mozgov's horrible contract. In exchange, they acquired Brook Lopez, who had an expiring deal the following summer and the 27th pick of the draft, who ended up becoming Kyle Kuzma.
The then-Lakers president publicly spoke about the decision to trade Russell and giving up on the Ohio State stud just two years after selecting him with the 2nd overall pick. Magic said that while he believes Russell has All-Star potential, he needs someone who could be a leader and could make his teammates better. Clearly, the Lakers legend was referring to Lonzo, who, coming out of college, had a reputation for being a great playmaker and an excellent passer.
So with Russell gone, the Lakers inevitably took Ball with the no. 2 pick and essentially tagged him as their point guard of the future. As mentioned, they also selected Kuzma with the Brooklyn pick.
In hindsight, if Johnson wasn't so quick to pull the trigger on D'Lo, then maybe the Lakers would have second-guessed on selecting Ball. With that, perhaps they could have looked in a different direction and drafted Jayson Tatum instead.
There's no saying if the Lakers could have shed the Mozgov contract to open up the salary to sign James without giving up, let's say, a Brandon Ingram. Or, as mentioned in the video, they could have mortgaged future draft picks to clear the space for The King.
So imagine a world where the 2018-19 Lakers have LeBron James, a rookie Jayson Tatum, an All-Star D'Angelo Russell, and possibly Brandon Ingram, depending on how creative Johnson gets. D-Lo and J.T. running with The King, instead of Zo and Kuz.
Again, this is all in hindsight. With all the possible moves they could have done to make way for James, there's no way to know if the Lakers even had a shot at acquiring Anthony Davis from the New Orleans Pelicans last summer. Remember, they gave up Ingram, Ball, Josh Hart, and a huge plethora of draft picks just to land LeBron's current dance partner in Los Angeles.
In this alternate universe with Tatum and Russell, perhaps they could have been packaged in the deal for Davis. Or maybe they could have dealt one of Tatum or Russell, along with Brandon Ingram, assuming don't sacrifice him to trade Mozgov, and their whole cabinet of remaining draft picks.
So, let's imagine that scenario for Lakers fans: LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and maybe Jayson Tatum? That's definitely a scary trio. Now, while playing the what if game is always fun, we're almost always never certain if things would have come out the way we envision it.
Nonetheless, all parties must be happy with their current situations now. Tatum, a first-time All-Star this 2019-20 season, has blossomed into a legitimate two-way star with the Boston Celtics. Russell, meanwhile, became an All-Star with the Nets last season and ended up with his buddy Karl-Anthony Towns in Minnesota this season, while making a short stop to learn from Stephen Curry and co. in Golden State.
And of course, Lakers fans very much pleased with LeBron James and Anthony Davis leading their parade to their 17th NBA championship.
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