It has been 13 games into the 2018-19 NBA season since LeBron James began officially playing for the Los Angeles Lakers, the team he chose to play for in the offseason. With a 7-6 record, the Lakers are in eighth place in the Western Conference standings. Though an adjustment period was expected from a team that just signed the biggest free agent name last summer, most people thought that James would be able to carry this team on his shoulders on most nights.
Unfortunately for Lakers fans, James’ presence doesn’t appear to be enough to instill a winning culture, leaving one to wonder what it would be like if he had chosen to play for the Philadelphia 76ers instead. After all, aside from Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, the Sixers also added Jimmy Butler a few days ago without losing much depth. Had James decided to take his talents to the City of Brotherly Love, he would have catapulted the Sixers to the top of the league. Is it possible that King James messed up by not going to Philly instead?
Summer 2018
The Akron native went from being the Cavaliers biggest star to just being one of the legends from one of the most storied franchises in league history.
Among his suitors this summer was the Sixers who had two of the best young stars in the league. James was well respected by both Simmons and Embiid who didn’t hide their kinship with the former Cavs forward.
Every time their teams met last season, the St. Vincent-St. Mary graduate would chat with the two future All-Stars from the Sixers. LeBron James saw himself as a mentor to Simmons whose game mirrored his quite a bit with both players possessing the all-around skills of many all-time greats. Many thought that James was endearing himself to the core players so it would be easier for him to sign with Philadelphia in the 2018 offseason.
In the weeks leading up to July 1 when free agents could agree to deals with teams, it appeared that any suitors other than the Lakers would be wasting their time trying to court James into signing with their team. Apparently, James was dead set on signing with the Lakers and that any other meeting would be the 15-year veteran going through the motions.
By July 3, the announcement came and very few were surprised by his decision.
The 2018-19 Lakers with James
With a very young team, the Lakers are still learning how to play with one another. Their lowly record shows that a winning team isn’t guaranteed even with James on board. Chemistry issues, missed rotations and late-game mishaps are some of the reasons why the Lakers haven’t been winning as consistently as they should.
Players like Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, Kyle Kuzma and Brandon Ingram have a lot to learn and they are taking a crash course from the four-time MVP as to what it takes to win in this league. That’s why the team added crafty veterans such as Rajon Rondo, Lance Stephenson, JaVale McGee and Tyson Chandler so that the learning curve with these youngsters won’t be as steep.
Nevertheless, the Lakers are looking more like also-rans in the race to the top of the Western Conference. They are in eighth place for now but only after they won three straight which coincided with signing of Chandler last week.
They have a long way to go before they can compete for a championship.
The 2018-19 Sixers with LeBron James
Simmons could be the torchbearer to James once the Lakers forward retires. The Sixers could have benefitted from having the two on the floor at the same time as bigs who could orchestrate the offense and play off of one another as well. It would have been interesting to see Simmons mature faster once he has a mentor of James’ caliber. At the same time, James won’t need to be on the floor all the time as a playmaker. He can focus more on the scoring chores, something that he’s adept at just as much as his passing acumen.
In Embiid, LeBron James would have had the dominant big man that he’s been looking for since his playing days with the Miami Heat when Chris Bosh was his teammate. Unlike Bosh, however, the 7-foot center will not be asked to park outside the three-point line but instead will be counted on to provide inside scoring aside from the usual rim protection on the defensive end. Embiid is an elite center and one who evokes images of the legendary centers of old.
Now what if the Sixers were still able to swing the deal for Butler aside from having James’ presence on the floor? James wouldn’t need to guard the best perimeter players any longer as that would be Butler’s primary responsibility. In fact, Butler would have been one of the best players James will ever play with.
Can you imagine James having three other All-Stars on his team? This team would rival the Golden State Warriors and may, in fact, propel them to becoming one of the greatest teams in NBA history. It’s not hard to imagine this team winning 70 games or more. The sky would have been the limit for this Sixers team if he had chosen Philly over L.A.
Did LeBron James Choose Wisely?
When James chose the Lakers, the decision had a lot to do with his family having a home in L.A. (two of them, actually) and the fact that his son could play high school basketball in the area. From a business standpoint, his decision made a lot of sense as well since he would be closer to Hollywood as well as the Nike offices.
But from a pure basketball decision, James could have solidified his chances of winning a ring by playing for the Sixers. They could easily win the championship, not just reach the Finals, even against a team such as the Warriors. Philly would have had the firepower to go toe-to-toe with Golden State on the offensive end and they would be just as tough on the defensive end, too. If these two went at it in the Finals, the Sixers could take these Warriors in five games or less. They could have been this good.
Conclusion
It’s hard to fault LeBron James for choosing the Lakers since his decision was based on other matters that concerned him more than basketball. But for his legacy as a player and the challenge that he presented himself with wanting to be the greatest to play the game, James shortchanged himself by not playing for the Sixers this season and the next three years.
It’s a decision he may regret when he retires. For now, though, he will have to content himself with merely bringing the Lakers as close to championship contention as possible before his contract is up in 2022, rather than possibly winning a title for four straight years.
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