LeBron James is Putting More Pressure on the Front Office as the Lakers Win More Games

01/09/23 • 38 min

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Locked On Lakers - Daily Podcast On The Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers have won five straight at a time when the rest of the conference is slumping. The Suns and Clippers have both lost six straight. The Jazz are sliding, the Blazers with them. as a result, the Lakers aren't just in contact with the play-in, they're creeping up on the real live playoff teams. Just a couple games back of the five spot.

That's a ton of unexpected progress at a time when, with Anthony Davis (and more!) on the sidelines, the Lakers just weren't thought of as a competitive team.

Yet here we are! And with that, LeBron James is cranking up the heat on the team's front office to kick it into high gear and make some trades to help improve the roster. Not later, not next season, now. In a walk-and-talk following Saturday's win over Sacramento with The Athletic's Sam Amick, LeBron said without saying that he thinks the front office should make a move. Sunday on Twitter, he tried to dial it back, but even a generous reading of the conversation (printed in full at The Athletic, and recreated on this podcast!) makes it pretty clear what James wants.

And of course he does! LeBron likes LA, and so does his family. He doesn't want to leave them, and they're not going anywhere. Meanwhile, he wants to play meaningful basketball as his career eventually winds down. The easiest way to make both of those things happen is for the Lakers to go all in. He even made it clear that while he wants to play with Bronny James should his son enter the NBA while LeBron is still in it, that doesn't mean they have to be on the same team. Sure, that would be great, preferable even, but just facing off against his son on an NBA court would do the trick.

That tells the Lakers it's safe to make trades, because I'm not just jumping ship in a year to play with my kid, wherever he ends up.

But with that in mind, is there a blockbuster type deal with those two first rounders available to make? Would a smaller deal for Detroit's Alec Burks (whether literally, or someone at his level) be enough to make a difference in this team's fortunes? Who is out there to be had?

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky

SEGMENT 1: The Lakers keep winning, improbably for sure, and gaining ground on a slumping Western Conference.

SEGMENT 2: LeBron widens the parameters of what "playing with Bronny" means. Why it matters, a lot.

SEGMENT 3: LeBron raises the temperature on the front office.

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That's a ton of unexpected progress at a time when, with Anthony Davis (and more!) on the sidelines, the Lakers just weren't thought of as a competitive team.

That tells the Lakers it's safe to make trades, because I'm not just jumping ship in a year to play with my kid, wherever he ends up.

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky

SEGMENT 1: The Lakers keep winning, improbably for sure, and gaining ground on a slumping Western Conference.

SEGMENT 2: LeBron widens the parameters of what "playing with Bronny" means. Why it matters, a lot.

SEGMENT 3: LeBron raises the temperature on the front office.

Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!

Built Bar

Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.

BetOnline

BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!

PrizePicks

First time users can receive a 100% instant deposit match up to $100 with promo code LOCKEDON. That’s PrizePicks.com – promo code; LOCKEDON

LinkedIn

LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNBA

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Previous Episode

Despite Davis, Reaves, Walker, and Brown injured, Lakers Beat Hawks Behind 25/7/10 from LeBron James

The day started poorly for the Lakers, who announced that Austin Reaves (hamstring) and Lonnie Walker IV (knee) will miss the next two weeks (at least), and meanwhile Troy Brown (quad) wouldn't be able to play Friday against the Hawks at Crypto. The Lakers were down so many bodies they signed veteran SG/SF Sterling Brown (not the actor), and had him suit up.

So would the Lakers suffer on the court, giving back a game after a fantastic win Wednesday over Miami?

Absolutely not! LeBron James was again excellent, but he had tons of help. Dennis Schröder stayed hot, scoring 21 points. Thomas Bryant was 8-12 from the floor, and had 13 rebounds. Russell Westbrook was strong, and Kendrick Nunn (remember him?) had easily his best game as a Laker. 23 points in just under 27 minutes. With so many guys on the shelf, Nunn will get more minutes now out of necessity, and doesn't need to look over his shoulder quite as much. Maybe that's the thing that can help him reach the form that prompted the Lakers to sign him, and podcast hosts to believe he could/would be a serious contributor?

It would be a nice silver lining to the injuries Nunn used this time to find his form, and became a useful player heading into the second half of the season.

We'll see what happens in Sacramento Saturday night, but the Lakers have quietly gone 16-11 since the 2-10 start. Guys are playing well around James. The light at the end of the tunnel maybe, just maybe, is actually light, not a train.

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky

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Built Bar

Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.

BetOnline

BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!

PrizePicks

First time users can receive a 100% instant deposit match up to $100 with promo code LOCKEDON. That’s PrizePicks.com – promo code; LOCKEDON

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Next Episode

The Lakers lose to the Nuggets, and get an Update on Anthony Davis' Possible Return.

Winners of five straight, the Lakers basically made a calculated sacrifice of that accomplishment, going into Denver Monday night and electing to give LeBron James, struggling with any number of physical maladies despite MVP-level play, the night off.

But without Austin Reaves, Lonnie Walker IV, Troy Brown Jr. and, of course, Anthony Davis, there was a very, very good chance the Lakers (despite playing so well of late) would have lost in Denver even if LeBron had played. And now he'll get a chance to rest until Thursday's game at home vs. Dallas. Four full days off (Sunday-Wednesday) is about as much rest as an NBA season provides, while only missing one game. So the Lakers were wise to take advantage, something easier to do now that they've regained contact with the rest of the conference.

Still, despite a home heavy stretch through the end of the month, the Lakers still face a stiff challenge to keep the momentum going while so many players are out. And to make matters worse, Pat Beverley left Monday's loss with a hip injury. The Lakers will have more info on him Tuesday or Wednesday, but given how he's turned his season around (and that the Lakers are suddenly very short on bodies) any missed time for Beverley would be very impactful. (Russell Westbrook suffered a dislocated right pinkie finger, too, but at least for the time being appears capable of playing. Which is a big deal, especially since he and LeBron have made significant progress in their two-man partnership.)

All this gets to LA's continuing problem - they may very well have used up, or nearly used up, a whole season's worth of margin for error in the first 12 games.

So can they hang on until Davis comes back? The news continues to be as good as can be expected, at least in the sense that the Lakers currently appear to be avoiding catastrophe. Davis, reports ESPN's Dave McMenamin, will start ramping up for a return now that the Lakers are back in Los Angeles. But that doesn't mean he's hitting the court. It starts in the pool, and then on the altered-gravity treadmill, with the hope they can "eye" a return in a couple of weeks, and start "penciling in a potential return to game action," McMenamin wrote.

So there's a lot of wiggle in here, for sure.

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky

SEGMENT 1: The Lakers lose in Denver as LeBron gets well-scheduled time off.

SEGMENT 2: Russell Westbrook is playing well with James, and remains a very durable presence in LA's oft-injured lineup.

SEGMENT 3: How long can the Lakers keep surviving down so many players?