By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
LeBron James has had a large enough influence on the moves that the Los Angeles Lakers have been doing since he arrived on the team in 2018, including the blockbuster – and now highly criticized – acquisition of Russell Westbrook. Carmelo Anthony, another player that James conscripted, even called him the “general manager” of the team back in September.
Now, and after the end of an absolutely disappointing season, the Lakers and LeBron may take a different approach.
“That’s not my decision,” James said, per ESPN. “It’s not my decision to sit here and say, ‘Well, this is what we should bring back and have on the roster.’ That would be the front office’s decision. And obviously, they may ask my input, but at the end of the day, they’ll make the decision they feel that best suits this franchise going forward.”
The Lakers are coming off a season that began with the team being considered a major title contender and finished with a 33 – 49 record and an elimination from Play-In contention. Not even James escaped the ire of the fans, despite having a highly productive run, but the one Laker who was panned the most was Westbrook.
LeBron had the best to say about Westbrook’s competitiveness but repeated that he won’t be the one who will decide whether the Lakers continue with him on board.
“One thing about Russ that I love and will always love is just his competitive spirit, what he brings to the game every single night,” James said. “And when you’re in a profession where so many injuries happen and so many things go on and to have a guy that’s reliable and can put on a uniform every single night, that’s something that I respect … I’m not going to sit here and make decisions for the front office and things of that nature, but I love being a teammate of Russ.”