Jerry West and LeBron James aren't just competing for the Larry O'Brien Trophy, but also bragging rights in Staples Center and throughout the city of Los Angeles. As the LA Clippers and the Los Angeles Lakers gear up for championship contention both next season and going forward, though, West and James still managed to get in a few pleasantries during a chance encounter at Las Vegas Summer League on Saturday.
LeBron James and NBA Legend Jerry West with a friendly exchange a day after the #Clippers have acquired Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. #Lakers pic.twitter.com/cWN7HQ5sa0
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) July 6, 2019
West, an advisor for the Clippers, is basking in the afterglow of helping pull off one of the most stunning sequences of player acquisition in NBA history. Immediately after it was announced that Kawhi Leonard had ended league-wide hysteria about his future by agreeing to sign with LA, we learned his acquisition was just the first of two interconnected moves the Clippers had up their sleeve. They also traded for Paul George, sending prized second-year guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, underrated forward Danilo Gallinari, and an unprecedented haul of future first-round picks to the Oklahoma City Thunder, immediately vaulting toward title contention.
That shocking development left James' Lakers, also playing the waiting game for Leonard, to scramble to fill out their roster around he and Anthony Davis from a shallow pool of free agents. Los Angeles has done well considering so many top-tier role players signed in the opening days of free agency, agreeing to deals with Quinn Cook, DeMarcus Cousins, Rajon Rondo, JaVale McGee, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
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