When it comes to LeBron James Lakers legacy, Angelenos have no one to blame but themselves
To understand LeBron James’ legacy with the Lakers, you have to rewind to the beginning. You know, the period Lakers fans may have blocked out. It was dismal.It was ugly.
It was dark. The 17-time NBA champions had plunged into their worst chapter in franchise history, missing the playoffs five straight seasons.During the slide, Lakers governor Jeanie Buss fired her older brother, Jim Buss, as the executive vice president of basketball operations and Mitch Kupchak as general manager. The team was rudderless. Then the guy who’s in a one-horse race with Michael Jordan for the greatest player of all-time decided to come to LA in free agency in 2018, breathing new life into a flailing franchise as though he were inflating a withered balloon. James was the NBA’s “it” guy.
He had just carried the Heat and Cavaliers to eight straight Finals, winning three championships. And he chose to bring his talents to LA, joining a bunch of young guys who couldn’t even scrounge their way into the first round of the playoffs. That changed everything. After one injury-riddled season that included James missing 17 straight games and eventually being shutdown after it became clear they weren’t going to make the playoffs, things dramatically shifted. James recruited Anthony Davis to the Lakers in 2019. In his second season with the Lakers, he led them to their first championship in a decade in 2020. During that time, it’s not hyperbolic to say that James was Los Angeles’ north star In January 2020, Kobe Bryant tragically died in a helicopter crash alongside his daughter, Gianna, and eight others. James helped mend a brokenhearted city. He got a tattoo of a Black Mamba in honor of Bryant, who spent all 20 seasons of his career with the Lakers, leading them to five championships.In the Lakers’ first game after Bryant’s death, James took the microphone and addressed the nearly 20,000 fans at Staples Center as he choked back tears, calling Lakers Nation...