LeBron James has had a lot of success over the course of his NBA career. With four NBA championships, Finals MVPs, and league season MVPs under his belt, he makes a case to be the GOAT that rivals the likes of Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.

While LeBron James may be great, he also had a bevy of talented teammates who were All-Stars at some points in their careers. His best teammates include Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and Anthony Davis.

Although LBJ had a lot of great teammates, not all of them thrived alongside The King. LeBron James has been known to elevate his teammates. However, this is not the case all the time. For this piece, let’s take a look at five players who struggled while playing with LBJ.

Iffy LeBron James Teammates

Russell Westbrook

Russell Westbrook was the biggest acquisition by the Lakers in the recent off-season. While he’s another elite player that can give the Lakers its new Big Three, a lot of fans were also skeptical with his fit. Unfortunately, the skepticism is slowly becoming a reality.

Westbrook has had a rough stint in a Purple and Gold jersey. Although Westbrook is averaging 19.3 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 8.9 assists per game, his shining moments have come while playing against low-seeded teams or without LeBron James.

Westbrook has provided the squad another ballhandler outside of LBJ. However, his lack of shooting and his need for the ball isn’t doing him and his squad any favors. Alongside James, in the six games they’ve played together, he has averaged 17 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 7.8 assists per game.

While he has produced for the Lakers, his efficiency has been dismal. According to StatMuse, Westbrook’s PER has only been registered at 14.4. Furthermore, despite putting together a Big Three of their own, the Lakers are only holding a 7-6 record including two losses against cellar dwelling teams like the Thunder and the Timberwolves.

Although James has played along All-Star guards such as Kyrie Irving and Dwyane Wade, Westbrook is a totally different player who has similar playing styles as James. Thankfully for the Lakers, it’s still early into the season. Hopefully, this should be enough time for Westbrook to acclimate in LA before LeBron James returns from injury.

Andre Drummond

When the injury bug hit the Lakers in the midst of their title defense last season, the squad took advantage of the buyout market by signing two-time All-Star Andre Drummond. Drummond is capable of racking up the rebounds and was expected to be a physical presence for the Lakers in lieu of the departure of Dwight Howard and Javale McGee. Unfortunately, his addition didn’t bold well for James and the Lakers, despite his life-long dream to play alongside James.

Like a traditional center, Drummond mainly hovered in the paint. Because of this, his presence took a hit on the team’s spacing. And for James, it made life more difficult for him to drive to the paint. Although Howard and McGee also operated in the paint, these centers were mainly asked to fulfill their limited roles. On the other hand, Drummond was positioned as a major contributor as the team’s starting center.

Aside from a bad fit, Drummond simply struggled to play in a talent-laden squad. While playing for the Lakers, Drummond averaged a career-low 7.3 points. Because of this, he was one of the big names that were let go by the Lakers in their roster overhaul during the off-season.

Isaiah Thomas

Isaiah Thomas made a lot of noise in the offseason, as he announced his desire to make a comeback into the NBA. One of the teams that took interest in him was James’s Lakers. Although that didn’t push through, IT and James were teammates back in 2018.

While this looked like a formidable pairing on paper, their team-up was uneventful. There were a lot of factors that IT dealt with in his stint with the Cavs. Aside from being part of a championship squad carrying high expectations, he also had to prove that he could still be the star he once was before a major hip injury.

At his peak, IT proved to be capable of registering MVP numbers. And in an ideal situation, IT would’ve been the perfect replacement to a disgruntled Kyrie Irving. His scoring and ball-handling would’ve reduced the pressure off LeBron James. But instead, the Cavs got a rehabilitating All-Star, which James was reportedly against.

Although James and IT tried to make it work, unfortunately, the Cavs played below expectations. In 15 games, with IT active on the roster, the Cavs only went 7-8. Furthermore, IT registered one of the most inefficient seasons of his career. He averaged 14.7 points, while shooting a measly 36% from the field and 25% from beyond the arc.

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While IT has been a liability on the defensive end ever since, without his explosive offense, his stay in Cleveland became forgettable. As a result, the Cavs immediately traded him to the Lakers midway into the season.

Jordan Clarkson

Speaking of the trade involving IT, one of the players that the Cavs received was Jordan Clarkson. Clarkson is currently the reigning Sixth Man of the Year. But before he won the award, he was expected to be the spark-plug off the bench for the former champions.

Clarkson showed his potential to score unconsciously ever since his Purple and Gold days. Because of this, James and the Cavs expected him to do the same, especially against the Warriors. Although he was fairly decent in the regular season, Clarkson struggled mightily in the postseason.

As a scorer, Clarkson loved to have the ball in his hands and to call isolation plays. And this certainly affected the Cavs' gameplan, given that James is the centerpiece of their offense. Furthermore, as a one-dimensional player at that time, Clarkson also struggled defensively which certainly didn’t bold well for the Cavs.

In the playoffs, Clarkson only averaged 4.5 points per outing while shooting a horrendous 29% from the field and 19% from rainbow country. Fast forward to today, Clarkson is far better-off without LebBron James. He has won the Sixth Man of the Year and has helped the Jazz to garner two playoff appearances ever since.

Jae Crowder

Two-way players often work well with superstars like LeBron James. These players include Danny Green and Shane Battier. Theoretically, having Jae Crowder alongside LeBron would’ve elevated the Cavs during their title defense.

Crowder came off a great stint with the Celtics. Prior to his arrival in Cleveland, Crowder averaged 13.9 points and 5.8 boards per game, while shooting an efficient 46.3% from the field and 39.8% from rainbow country.

However, Crowder never really duplicated those numbers with the Cavs. He only registered 8.6 points per game, while shooting only 32.8% from three. His struggles could be linked to his mother’s passing due to cancer. Aside from this, Crowder admitted he had to make adjustments playing alongside James.

According to Crowder in an interview, he said about LeBron James, “It’s a bit of an adjustment for anybody. The best thing you can do is have time with him and play with him. I think if you play alongside him for quite a while, you seem to get better with time. It’s a bumpy road there – in a stretch where you just have to be patient and trust the process…”

Since leaving the Cavs, Crowder has become a critical piece for championship contenders like the Heat and the Suns. In fact, Crowder and James have battled it out in the postseason for the past two years. And despite being former teammates, James and Crowder have shown no love for each other.