Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James has proven to be a catalyst in this league, and his impact hasn't been proven any more evidently than the first time he left his Cleveland Cavaliers after his infamous decision to join the Miami Heat in 2010.
The Cavs plummeted from an East-leading 61-21 record in 2009-10 to a futile 19-63 record in 2010-11, the second-biggest record drop by a team in league history and the biggest in winning percentage decline from one season to the next.
Something I didn't realize, but stumbled upon while researching something else – The last time LeBron James left the Cavs, they suffered the biggest winning % drop in NBA history. pic.twitter.com/7QXUIpZeWV
— John Schuhmann (@johnschuhmann) August 28, 2018
The post-Michael-Jordan Chicago Bulls dropped a whopping 49 games after his second retirement, going from an East-topping 62-20 record to a mere 13-37 during a lockout-shortened NBA season in 1998-99.
The San Antonio Spurs are a close third in that category with a 39-game differential in 1996-97, a season in which David Robinson played only six games total. That fate would change the following year, as Rookie of the Year Tim Duncan would join the fold, teaming up with a much healthier Admiral, who played 73 games in 1997-98.
LeBron James; even at 33 years old, possesses the potential to catapult this Lakers team to playoff heights — but his effect will be more largely felt in the team he left behind, as the Cavaliers are likely lottery-bound with a hollowed-out roster.
The King would go down in the history books as one of the most influential players and as one of the most vital pieces in any NBA roster, capable or making or breaking an entire organization with his mere presence. Fortunately for the Lakers, he's now a soldier and not a foe.
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