NBA Free Agency Rumors: Lakers A ‘Better Fit’ For LeBron James Than Rockets Or Sixers, Says Colin Cowherd
Despite their recent loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, many basketball personalities believe that the Los Angeles Lakers are looking good these days. The team had previously won five straight, four of them on the road, until Isaiah Thomas failed to execute in the clutch on Monday night to allow the Blazers to pull off the come-from-behind win.
The Lakers’ young core of Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, and Kyle Kuzma are all playing well. Add to that the re-emergence of Julius Randle, who is also a young player, and head coach Luke Walton’s squad is turning out to be an attractive destination for would-be free agents this summer.
Foremost of those superstar free agents is LeBron James, who is still considered by many as the best player on the planet right now. In a recent article, Bleacher Report mentioned that “if every team made a free-agency wish list, LeBron James might sit atop all 30.”
The 33-year-old James is in his 15th season in the league, but his stats are still getting better. At the moment, the King is averaging 26.8 points (his highest in four seasons), 8.4 rebounds (third-best in his career), a career-high 9.0 assists, and 1.5 steals in an NBA second-best 37.1 minutes per game. Indeed, LeBron has not lost a step despite being in the NBA Finals for the last seven years.
With the continued struggles of the Cleveland Cavaliers and James’ rumored beef with team owner Dan Gilbert, a lot of analysts think that the three-time NBA champion would consider looking elsewhere when he hits unrestricted free agency in July. Three teams are currently heavily linked to the four-time league MVP, and they are the Houston Rockets, Philadelphia 76ers, and the Lakers.
In a recent episode of Fox Sports’ The Herd, veteran host Colin Cowherd told guest analyst Chris Broussard that James would be a better fit with the Lakers than with the Rockets or Sixers.
Broussard actually opened the topic by saying that James Harden might not be ready to “step aside” for LeBron to become the Rockets’ No. 1 option.
Cowherd had the same sentiment, saying that he had “never bought Houston” as an ideal destination for James. The host said that the “Houston thing never works” for LeBron because the 14-time All-Star does not want to have another ball-dominant player sharing the court with him, as evidenced by the Cavs’ poor showing with Thomas.
The Rockets already have two primary ball handlers in Harden and Chris Paul. Adding James would only make him the third one.
Both Cowherd and Broussard said that Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball would be “perfect” for James especially if the rookie will continue to improve his three-point shooting. Broussard noted that Ball is the kind of point guard that “gets rid of the ball quickly,” which is what James thrives on.
Meanwhile, Cowherd also said that Philadelphia will be an impractical destination for LeBron as well. The host cited the injury history of the Sixers’ two stars, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, as a potential risk to take for James. He noted that Simmons’ inability to shoot the three and penchant for commanding the ball in every play would also not be appealing to James.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Na0qxqUio_g
