Through the first 10 games of the regular season, the Los Angeles Lakers have a better offensive rating when superstar small forward LeBron James is on the bench.
When LeBron James is on the court, the Lakers' offensive rating is 113.4. When LeBron is on the bench, though, that rating jumps up to 121.6, per Basketball Reference.
The Lakers have started the season 4-6. While they are scoring the third most points per game in the NBA at 118.9, Los Angeles is giving up a whopping 120.0 points per contest, which is 27th in the league.
LeBron James is the best basketball player in the world. It's still early, so these small sample size numbers are going to be crazy throughout the league.
Article Continues BelowHowever, it's interesting that the Lakers are more productive when The King is not playing.
There's definitely more ball movement on the court when LeBron is on the bench. As great as he is, James does have a tendency to hold the ball on offense while he surveys the floor from the perimeter or post. That tactic worked in the Eastern Conference, but it won't be successful in the West because defenses are much stingier.
Odds are that the Lakers' offensive rating will improve over time with LeBron James on the floor. Magic Johnson and Luke Walton reportedly had a heated meeting recently where Magic asked Walton to run a better offense. Only time will tell if those changes will help the Lakers win more games in the rugged Western Conference.