LeBron James closes out Lakers era  

(News4usonline) – Whenever LeBron James stepped on the court, the Los Angeles Lakers knew they had a chance to win. That’s because James is a proven winner. He’s won four NBA titles. He’s an Olympic champion. He is a gold medal winner. 

For eight seasons, the Lakers could count on James showing up for work and putting in the sweat and effort to be better and make his teammates better. The Lakers are about to find out real fast of having life without LeBron. 

Without James dominating ball control, just how much spacing will players like Austin Reaves be able to create for themselves? How will they react when they discover that James won’t be there to bail them out anymore? 

It’s a different ballgame when you can play off a superstar than when you no longer have that option. The rules change and so does the way that opponents play you. With James, the Lakers were always in the conversation of possibly making a deep run in the postseason. 

The Lakers were considered championship contenders every year that James suited up for the team. At least James’ presence on the team presented that illusion. Moving forward, the Lakers won’t be afforded that luxury. 

Right now, at least on paper, the Lakers are nothing more than a mid-level team hoping to strike gold again without James. One could make the argument that the Lakers didn’t really achieve that gold standard status that the franchise was used to.    

In three seasons, the Lakers made the first round of the playoffs, but then got bounced. For two seasons, the Lakers missed the postseason entirely. That’s a total of five of the eight years that James played for the Lakers that Los Angeles didn’t measure up the team’s lofty ambitions.  

Was that on James or was that failure a collective team effort? For what it is worth, the Lakers never really surrounded James with the right pieces to win multiple titles. Anthony Davis was always hurt. Luka Doncic just arrived on the scene. And we really don’t know just how good Reaves is without James being out on the floor creating space for him.        

James leaving the Lakers was not personal. It was business. The move was calculated. It’s well-thought out. And it should not come as a surprise. 

James is pretty much at the end of his career. In the eight seasons he played for the Lakers, he can look back and say he gave it his all. He brought the team an NBA championship. This current form of a roster that the Lakers currently have in place is not going to win a title. 

Not unless they mange to land another superstar or two. 

Perhaps James saw the writing on the wall. Maybe that’s why he decided to go ghost on the Lakers. It was time. With James gone, reality for the Lakers probably won’t sink in until training camp. It’s going to take the Lakers a whole lot more than Doncic being the face of the franchise now to achieve a championship goal. 

Reaves signing that max contract was a nice gesture for him, but will that guarantee the Lakers advancing past the second round of the NBA playoffs? Nope, not at all. With that said, the James’ era is officially over for the Lakers. 

James has reportedly told the Lakers that he is not coming back. After eight years of wearing the purple and gold, James has decided he is ready to move on.  What does that mean for the Lakers? 

It means they no longer have perhaps the game’s best closer at their disposal. It means that after bringing the franchise an NBA title in the time span he played, it felt like James never really got the reverence as other Laker greats that have been celebrated. 

The Lakers got the most out of James, who filled that superstar void the team desperately needed at the time he joined the ballclub. Like the superstars before him, James gave the Lakers a fighting chance each and every night he laced up his shoes. That’s really all you can ask for. 

Cover Art/Lead Image: Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) has hit another milestone during his NBA career. Photo credit: Mark Hammond/The Bulletin for News4usonline