RealGM

As we all know LeBron is starting over recent NBA champion Jayson Tatum. At this stage in their careers Tatum is likely better than LeBron. This comes shortly after we saw the nepotism that got Bronny drafted. Quite frankly, that nepotism made me completely sick to my stomach, and my thoughts are with the potential draftee that didn't get drafted because of Bronny.

Is this a display of veterans privilege? LeBron has the resume, but Tatum is better right now. How is this AT ALL fair?

Are you serious?

You should ask John Stockton and Magic Johnson.

I think only 4 starters were named

Bron, Curry, KD and Embiid

5th starter could be Kawhi, Tatum or Ant
Maybe even Jrue or AD for defense

Bron > Tatum

I don't think Tatum was better than LeBron this past season.

Triple M wrote:I think only 4 starters were named

Bron, Curry, KD and Embiid

5th starter could be Kawhi, Tatum or Ant
Maybe even Jrue or AD for defense

5th starter is clearly Kawhi if he's healthy. They're just gonna wait it out to see how good he looks... it should be Tatum/Edwards otherwise

I don't think Tatum is better than LeBron, nor do I think he'd be starting over LeBron even if he was. By all accounts they won't even be playing the same position.

Is Tatum better player than lebron?

Tatum is overrated. Just tossing that out there.

Tatum is better than Lebron in 2024. You’ll see it in nearly every ranking list included the realgm one currently who is ranked higher. Lebron’s defense is mid and is a problem. He looked bad during the recent scrimmage game on that end. Hes getting the start because his name is Lebron.

ScrantonBulls wrote:How is this AT ALL fair?

Fair? Why does it matter? The team has a shared goal in mind.

Tatum is a better first man off the bench than LeBron would be. You guys have to stop with the short-baked, 1v1 analysis and think strategically for once. No team is countering Tatum coming off the bench; it's sustained pressure.

They should just go ahead and honor the veterans with a starting spot. Curry/Kawhi/Durant/LeBron+Embiid.

Tatum can get the same number of minutes with the second unit.

Tatum is clearly better than current Lebron. This isn’t even an argument

ScrantonBulls wrote:As we all know LeBron is starting over recent NBA champion Jayson Tatum. At this stage in their careers Tatum is likely better than LeBron. This comes shortly after we saw the nepotism that got Bronny drafted. Quite frankly, that nepotism made me completely sick to my stomach, and my thoughts are with the potential draftee that didn't get drafted because of Bronny.

Is this a display of veterans privilege? LeBron has the resume, but Tatum is better right now. How is this AT ALL fair?

THE PRIVILEGE is in the selection of the roster, not who starts. EVERYONE STARTS

so it's fair
lebron earned the right and the privilege. i am not a lebron-liker in all ways conceivable. but he's an elder statesman

AussieCeltic wrote:Tatum is clearly better than current Lebron. This isn’t even an argument

This is not the point. The gap in performance between Tatum and the first opponent coming off the bench is wider than Tatum starting against the opposing team's starters. In addition, LeBron has a better skillset to benefit the starters earlier in the game than Tatum.

This isn't a my guy vs your guy thing. It's purely strategic.

With a roster like this, I don’t think you try to start your “best 5” anyway.

Create lineups that are balanced and theoretically fit. Use the depth advantage and come at them in waves.

Jayson Hatum

infinite11285 wrote:

AussieCeltic wrote:Tatum is clearly better than current Lebron. This isn’t even an argument

This is not the point. The gap in performance between Tatum and the first opponent coming off the bench is wider than Tatum starting against the opposing team's starters. In addition, LeBron has a better skillset to benefit the starters earlier in the game than Tatum.

This isn't a my guy vs your guy thing. It's purely strategic.

I doubt it’s strategic. The gap in performance between Lebron and the first opponent off the bench is still a huuuuuuuuge margin. It’s more optics than anything.

Tatum has been the 2nd best American player behind Embiid the last 2 seasons. It should be Embiid, Tatum, Curry and everyone else can fall in line after that.

Probably more about fit, specifically ball handling and distribution, than anything else. It doesn't hurt that he's 6'9" and built like a truck. We've got more than enough scoring punch with this pack of guys than is necessary, so having a flexible player like James (even in his advanced age) is a strong positive for us.