The Los Angeles Lakers are currently sitting at 30-35 and find themselves dangerously close to missing the playoffs. As people try to figure out just exactly what went wrong for the Lakers, one Western Conference executive has put the blame squarely on LeBron James.

Speaking in an interview with Bleacher Report regarding the state of the Lakers and how LeBron James seems to be shifting blame, one anonymous Western Conference executive was critical of how James seems to have pointed the finger elsewhere.

Instead of taking ownership of the problem, like a Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan would, this executive wonders why James hasn’t stepped forward.

“Now it's all about deferring and putting blame on somebody else,” one of the Western Conference executives said. “Instead of being like an old-school guy and saying: ‘I've got to do a better job. I've got to make my teammates better.' Great players and great leaders, that's what they do. That's what Kobe [Bryant] would've done. That's what Michael Jordan would've done.”

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While James deserves some of the blame for the Lakers tough season, some of what he’s said is true. The Lakers do rely heavily on James and a handful of young players to carry the load, and the team is not very well equipped for the modern NBA.

Add on top of that the litany of lengthy injuries that players like Lonzo Ball and LeBron James have gone through, and you’re left with a season that looks nothing like the promising one fans initially had hoped for.

With just 16 games to go, the Lakers are seven games out of the final spot of the playoffs, and in need of a miracle to even have a hope of clinching a spot.

Should they miss the postseason, it’ll be LeBron James’ first time in 13 years not making the playoffs, and he and the Lakers will be under some heavy scrutiny in the offseason.