The Los Angeles Lakers are in deep trouble. LeBron James’ return has not gone as expected. There are basketball issues and they’ll likely cause the franchise to miss the playoffs. There are also some serious interpersonal problems.
One need not be a body language expert or occupational family therapist to know there are rifts. At this point, the Lakers are doing the opposite of hiding the acrimony. We’re just a few weeks removed from Benchgate. James has taken to the media and social media to craft a “woe is me” narrative.
Last night, there was another small thing that could be reflective of a big thing. The future Hall of Famer turned his back on his other teammates in the huddle.
Reasonable minds can disagree whether this is a big deal or not. My gut tells me it isn’t, that LeBron was simply seeing who was coming onto the court for the New Orleans Pelicans.
But then I remember that the NBA is nothing if not a feelings factory where every move must be weighed and measured. These guys seem to all have Burn Books at their house. There is just so much drama.
And even though this incident is perfectly understandable, all of James’ actions have built the foundation on which a Big Deal Take could be built. If one doesn’t want the public furiously pouring over every little detail for clues about team chemistry, don’t let it be known that the ingredients — especially the main one — is combustible.
That’s the type of stuff that will prevent people from considering the whole picture. Or finding examples of James interacting with his younger squad with traditional leadership tactics Wednesday night.
Like this, this seems like pretty solid teammate stuff, but what do I know? And teammates seemed pretty happy when LeBron hit a dagger three-pointer to seal the win against the Pelicans last night.
The NBA. I love this game. But nowhere near others love the game of feelings and superstar beef.
