LeBron James’ chapter with the Los Angeles Lakers has come to an end. The NBA superstar has notified the team, where he’s spent the last eight seasons, of his decision to sign with a new franchise during free agency.
Despite a public display of mutual respect between both parties following James’ announcement, it’s evident that the relationship between James and the Lakers had its troubles. If everything had been seamless, James might have chosen to conclude his illustrious NBA career in Los Angeles.
Fans and analysts alike are curious about when the rift between James and the Lakers began. On July 2, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported that the “disconnect” originated when the Lakers traded Russell Westbrook after a disappointing 2021-22 season, a breach from which their relationship never fully healed.
Back in July 2021, the Lakers acquired Westbrook, in a trade that sent Kyle Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Montrezl Harrell, and the 22nd overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft to the Washington Wizards.
James was reportedly influential in bringing Westbrook to Los Angeles. Alongside Anthony Davis, James believed that Westbrook’s addition would transform the Lakers into championship contenders once more, following their early exit from the 2021 NBA playoffs.
But it didn’t happen. Westbrook struggled alongside James and Davis, failing to produce his typical offensive output and committing too many turnovers. Westbrook was subject to a ton of scrutiny because of this, especially after the Lakers finished the 2021-22 season at 33-49 and missed the playoffs.
Westbrook started coming off the bench for LA during the 2022-23 campaign. While this produced better results than him spending most of his time in a lineup with James, the Lakers’ on-court cohesion never came close to what everyone expected when Westbrook came to LA. He was then traded to the Jazz in February 2023.
ESPN’s Baxter Holmes reported in January that Jeanie Buss (the Lakers’ president and controlling owner in 2021) was frustrated that James failed to take accountability for the Westbrook trade not working because the Lakers apparently made the move to appease him.
Now it appears that this frustration was never quite solved, despite James staying in LA until now.