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JaVale McGee was one of the first players to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers this summer following the arrival of LeBron James. In a recent piece by Sam Alipour of ESPN, McGee himself shed some light on why picking the Lakers over a return to the Golden State Warriors turned out to be a no-brainer for him.
Having spent the past two championship-winning seasons with the Warriors, McGee had already carved out a nice niche for himself in the squad. To most, the more sensible choice would have been to stay in Oakland, and perhaps win a couple more championships.
However, McGee admitted that the winds changed once he learned that LeBron had finally agreed to a move to L.A. Once the opportunity to team up with James arose, he did not hesitate one bit, and decided to jump ship at the soonest possible time.
āGoing back to Oakland was a great opportunity, but coming here with LeBron and knowing how that is gonna set the city on fire, a city that I already live in [in the offseason], I definitely wanted to be a part of that,ā said McGee.
At the end of the day, McGee found it more appealing to build something from the ground up ā alongside arguably the best player in the game today ā as opposed to being part of a budding dynasty.
As McGee explained, it did not take too long for him to make up his mind. It's as if he had already packed his bags, and was only waiting for LeBron's deal to be official.
āI signed like a couple hours after LeBron,ā he added.
McGee could have been part of history had he stayed with the Warriors. However, as it turns out, the 30-year-old had other plans. For McGee, turning down a move to L.A. to play alongside one of the GOAT's was not an option.
