As has been the case for over two decades now, you can't go a day during the NBA season without something newsworthy happening with LeBron James. 40,000 points? Sure, that was fun. Hourglass emoji? Yeah, been there. Another victory in his battle with Father Time? Getting used to those, right?
Well, this week on an episode of the Nightcap Show, Gilbert Arenas and Shannon Sharpe discussed LeBron James' standing as a Los Angeles Lakers, and Arenas — a former rival of LeBron with the Washington Wizards — made a comment that has a lot of folks' ears perking up.
Shannon Sharpe: “LeBron James could win a championship every year he would have been here, and he still wasn’t gonna surpass [Kobe Bryant and Magic Johnson].”
Gilbert Arenas: “LeBron was a rental for Lakers greatness.” 😳
(via @NightcapShow_)pic.twitter.com/E77VOLrQal
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) March 7, 2024
On one hand calling either the best or second-best player in NBA history “a rental” feels disrespectful. So I'm not gonna second what Agent Zero said here, but what Shannon Sharpe said does feel spot on. I just happened to be in Los Angeles in July 2018 when LeBron announced he'd be signing with the Lakers. There was not much fanfare in LA. The general sentiment among the people that I spoke to was still, “He's not Kobe,” which had been engrained in Lakers fans for well over a decade because of the media manufactured Kobe vs. LeBron rivalry.
I think certain circumstances have made LeBron “more of a Laker” than even I believed he would be when he first signed in LA. The tragic death of Kobe Bryant, LeBron's response to that, and the Lakers winning the NBA Title in the Bubble less than a year after Kobe's passing put LeBron on a tier that a title alone wouldn't have. No matter what you think of him, he's one of only eight Lakers players (Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal, Magic Johnson, James Worthy, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain and Jerry West) who has ever won a Finals MVP. That's not nothing, especially for a franchise that prides itself on its championship pedigree.
But when it's all said and done, the Lakers will always be the third team I remember LeBron James playing for. LeBron was Cleveland, and if he ever went back (again), the city itself and Cavaliers fans would obviously welcome him back with open arms. I think it's fair to say that LeBron peaked as a player as a member of the Miami Heat. It's also the only stop where he won back-to-back NBA Titles, and where he helped to usher in the Player Empowerment Era. Playing for the Lakers felt like the logical next stop for a guy who, A) Has a deep appreciation for the history of the game of basketball and what playing for the Lakers means, and B) Has his eye on endeavors that exist outside of the basketball world.
The big question left to ask is, will Los Angeles be LeBron James' final stop? Is LeBron comfortable living in LA and playing on a team that fancies itself as a contender, but doesn't have the horsepower to compete on that level anymore? Is the pursuit of the ghost of Michael Jordan still driving him, and if so, where will that lead him next? And lastly, would LeBron abandon Los Angeles and wherever his best chance to win a ring is in order to have a chance to play with his son, Bronny James?
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