The Los Angeles Lakers are now less than two months out from their upcoming 2025 season, which is slated to tip off on October 21. It will be yet another season for four-time league MVP LeBron James, who is entering his first year in which he is no longer the clear No. 1 option on his team.
Still, James' “The King” nickname is apparently not going anywhere, as evidenced by a recent commercial the star did for Nike.
“He carried the weight of every expectation on his shoulders. But he never broke. We were all witnesses. Every rival was defeated. Every idol was destroyed. He took the crown and kept it,” the narrator said in the commercial, alongside imagery of James putting on a crown, per NBACentral on X, formerly Twitter, via Nike.
LeBron’s new ad for Nike
“He carried the weight of every expectation on his shoulders. But he never broke. We were all witnesses. Every rival was defeated. Every idol was destroyed. He took the crown and kept it.” 👀👑
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) September 1, 2025
Fans in the comment section on X had mixed reactions to the post.
“I mean he only won FOUR championships in like 20 years idk if every idol was destroyed,” noted one fan.
“‘Every rival was defeated. Every idol was destroyed.' Uhmmm he didn’t beat Dirk… Also, he has losing records vs Tim Duncan, Steph, and KD in the Finals,” added another.
However, other fans were on board with the commercial's depiction of the Lakers star.
“Everyone hating on bron but deep down they know he killed their favorite team,” added another fan.
An interesting time for LeBron James
As previously noted, the 2025-26 season will be the first in LeBron James' career in which there is clearly a better player than him on the team. That distinction belongs to Lakers star Luka Doncic, whom the team signed to a contract extension this offseason to accompany his new weight loss.
With Doncic and James leading the charge and new offseason acquisitions Marcus Smart and Deandre Ayton now in the mix and hoping to contribute, the Lakers seem poised to take a step up after their disappointing first-round playoff exit versus the Minnesota Timberwolves to conclude the 2024-25 season.
In any case, the Lakers' 2025-26 campaign will get underway with a home game against the Golden State Warriors on October 21.
