The LeBron James - 21-22 Regular Season Thread - New Thread Soon Part 2

[TroubleS0me]

Year #18 for the King, He's Back, he's healthy

1st Game vs Warriors

34 PTS
11 REBS
3PT FG% 45
FG% 56.5

[TroubleS0me]

he will pass K. Malone in scoring this season

[nzahir]

Can we lock the offseason thread?

I'm preparing myself for a rocky start but I am hoping we can get it together fast with our schedule after the Suns (maybe we even win and surprise myself and Russ goes off)

Grizz, Spurs, Okc, Cavs Hou, Hou, Okc, Por, CHA, Heat, Wolves, Spurs

Can we go 9-3 there?

[Ballerhogger]

On scoring mission he played great made few dumbs plays when he was off we sucked a lot :

[GSP]

Can we lock the offseason thread?

I'm preparing myself for a rocky start but I am hoping we can get it together fast with our schedule after the Suns (maybe we even win and surprise myself and Russ goes off)

Grizz, Spurs, Okc, Cavs Hou, Hou, Okc, Por, CHA, Heat, Wolves, Spurs

Can we go 9-3 there?

Yeah thats a really easy sched.

Bron has owned the Spurs as a Laker.

Only tough games are Grizz, Blazers, Heat and prolly Wolves

[homecourtloss]

Didn’t watch last night (hate 10:30 pm starts), but looks like it went about how I expected. Vogel has no idea how to put together proper lineups and Pelinka is the dumbest GM in the NBA. LeBron had a nice, efficient night though. 34/11/5 on 57% shooting. It’s a shame he has such stupid people running the team. For all his problems Dan Gilbert wasn’t afraid to spend like crazy.

He was a bit hampered by all the injuries and resorted to Bradley at the end who played much better than Monk or Westbrook.

The crazy thing is that as poorly as Westbrook played, the Lakers were up 85-76 with 1:20 left in the third when that crazy Rondo-Westbrook-Melo lineup played at replacement levels and then gave away the game.

LeBron on court with Westbrook off court:

9 minutes, 20 possessions, 115.7 ORtg, 70 DRtg

LeBron + AD on court with Westbrook off court:

7 minutes, 14 possessions, 121.4 ORtg, 85.7 DRtg

At some point unless a miracle takes place, they’re going to have to consider having Westbrook play off the bench, which will cause chemistry/locker room problems. LeBron and AD look more than capable of winning playoff series if not for literally the worst possible surrounding cast in ever which way. Having another decent defender like Ariza in there who can also shoot would have been big for this team but is that doesn’t look like it will possible because Ariza coming back off of injuries will be iffy.

[Mos_Heat]

Y’all are blaming Pelinka, but equal blame should be put on Bron and maybe AD as well. There’s no way this roster gets put together without their blessing.

I mean, that's 100% on Lebron and AD. Basically LAL had Hield route and Westbrook routeб and Lebron/AD chose Westbrook. Pelinka just overpaid in the trade like he usually does

I don’t care what the reports say. I’ll never believe that LeBron wanted Westbrook. LeBron is a very smart basketball mind. Their games don’t mesh well. Hield is a perfect LeBron ball player. Great from 3 and loves jacking up shots. I’ll always believe AD wanted Westbrook and LeBron agreed to keep him happy. It’s the same reason why they’ve trotted out a useless center next to AD for the past three seasons. Do you think LeBron really likes not having spacing?

I think that Lebron, and most bball players, think about the basketball not the way you do. He's the best player of all time and thinks that he can fit with any other good player. Being a great basketball mind on the court and off the court are two separate things. Do you really think that Lebron would rather play with Brogdon or VanVleet instead of Westbrook? No way

[PistolPeteJR]

Y’all are blaming Pelinka, but equal blame should be put on Bron and maybe AD as well. There’s no way this roster gets put together without their blessing.

I mean, that's 100% on Lebron and AD. Basically LAL had Hield route and Westbrook routeб and Lebron/AD chose Westbrook. Pelinka just overpaid in the trade like he usually does

I think it was AD that wanted Westbrook. LeBron was pulling for DeMar/Hield.

What makes you say this?

[thebigbird]

I mean, that's 100% on Lebron and AD. Basically LAL had Hield route and Westbrook routeб and Lebron/AD chose Westbrook. Pelinka just overpaid in the trade like he usually does

I don’t care what the reports say. I’ll never believe that LeBron wanted Westbrook. LeBron is a very smart basketball mind. Their games don’t mesh well. Hield is a perfect LeBron ball player. Great from 3 and loves jacking up shots. I’ll always believe AD wanted Westbrook and LeBron agreed to keep him happy. It’s the same reason why they’ve trotted out a useless center next to AD for the past three seasons. Do you think LeBron really likes not having spacing?

I think that Lebron, and most bball players, think about the basketball not the way you do. He's the best player of all time and thinks that he can fit with any other good player. Being a great basketball mind on the court and off the court are two separate things. Do you really think that Lebron would rather play with Brogdon or VanVleet instead of Westbrook? No way

You very well could be right. I’ll never know, obviously. And I do think sometimes fans can forget that this is their job and their teammates are their coworkers. LeBron might enjoy having Westbrook as a co-worker more than he would a guy like Hield who would be a much better on-court fit. It just honestly boggles my mind that someone like LeBron with only so many years left in this league would want to spend them playing next to Westbrook. I’m not expecting much out of this season, but I hope for the best. I’m excited to get to watch the game tomorrow, though we’ll see how long that excitement lasts

[homecourtloss]

LeBron making wild turnaround fades and threes everywhere masked how awful the offense was. The pace was insane in that game (113 possessions), so the raw numbers seemed to be there but really weren’t.

—Lakers took the fewest % of shots at the rim out of the 26 teams that have played so far.
—9th most from 10-16 feet
—The most from 16-3pt
—6th most from 3 point

Replacing the midrange with shots at the rim is of course ideal, but there were no lanes for drives in this game (Lakers were in the bottom 5 for drives). LeBron didn’t take any shots at the rim, and had a very low asst%. When the Lakers first traded for Westbrook, people rightly questioned in what way the offense would be as good taking the ball out of James’s hands. An exceptional execution of what they’re trying to run might perhaps get them there (highly unlikely), but otherwise, the numbers don’t work.

[Ballerhogger]

Westbrook has to get it together. Our lack of bench depth killed us. Overall a lot mistakes . but bazemore was nice

[falcolombardi]

they need to play westbrook + davis lineups and trade for a shooting stretch 4 since who knows how Ariza will come back

[Greyhound]

LeBron making wild turnaround fades and threes everywhere masked how awful the offense was. The pace was insane in that game (113 possessions), so the raw numbers seemed to be there but really weren’t.

—Lakers took the fewest % of shots at the rim out of the 26 teams that have played so far.
—9th most from 10-16 feet
—The most from 16-3pt
—6th most from 3 point

Replacing the midrange with shots at the rim is of course ideal, but there were no lanes for drives in this game (Lakers were in the bottom 5 for drives). LeBron didn’t take any shots at the rim, and had a very low asst%. When the Lakers first traded for Westbrook, people rightly questioned in what way the offense would be as good taking the ball out of James’s hands. An exceptional execution of what they’re trying to run might perhaps get them there (highly unlikely), but otherwise, the numbers don’t work.

On this note, It appears that LeBron made polishing his mid range game a focus for this season.

I approve greatly, as I have been calling for it for a few seasons now.

The team as a whole needs to get shots at the basket, but I like the way LeBron is mixing it up. I (for one) am hoping he sticks to this Miami Heat LeBron style game.

[Greyhound]

they need to play westbrook + davis lineups and trade for a shooting stretch 4 since who knows how Ariza will come back

They had one in Markieff and let him walk for Melo.

Bad move, as I called it in the offseason.

[donnieme]

LeBron making wild turnaround fades and threes everywhere masked how awful the offense was. The pace was insane in that game (113 possessions), so the raw numbers seemed to be there but really weren’t.

—Lakers took the fewest % of shots at the rim out of the 26 teams that have played so far.
—9th most from 10-16 feet
—The most from 16-3pt
—6th most from 3 point

Replacing the midrange with shots at the rim is of course ideal, but there were no lanes for drives in this game (Lakers were in the bottom 5 for drives). LeBron didn’t take any shots at the rim, and had a very low asst%. When the Lakers first traded for Westbrook, people rightly questioned in what way the offense would be as good taking the ball out of James’s hands. An exceptional execution of what they’re trying to run might perhaps get them there (highly unlikely), but otherwise, the numbers don’t work.

i thought it was a double edged sword but a bigger sample will tell us more. Being able to score on lower percentage shots was big potential. Not a guarantee but could suggest they have an even higher gear when they do hunt higher opportunity looks at the rim. In the last 2 years they barely get over 90 points with those ranges. This year I'm yet to see any drive and kick offense but they are still scoring.

Side issue is whether the defensive tradeoff was worth it. Scoring 112 and conceding 120 to roleplayers is a bad omen. They've been leaking points since preseason. Defense can't link two stops to save its life. Any possession that has ball movement is an open 3 conceded. They are well on their way to having the league worst defense. Warriors blew a lot of open looks the first 3 quarters then a 5 minute hot stretch was all they needed to win. Your overall premise is correct though. Funny to say the Warriors might have had the more sustainable offense in that game. Roleplayers went off but it came off of well worked offense.

[nzahir]

they need to play westbrook + davis lineups and trade for a shooting stretch 4 since who knows how Ariza will come back

They had one in Markieff and let him walk for Melo.

Bad move, as I called it in the offseason.

Kieff also sucked

His jumper was never good besides for that little part in Detroit and the bubble

Was awful last year

He was an ok defender though

Would have loved Millsap, Jeff Green, or Rudy Gay

Realistically speaking, we’re stuck with Russ this year

Our positive assets: THT, Nunn

The others are just expiring salary fillers. Ellington may have some value

I think Nunn should be a solid fit, don’t see us moving him for no reason

And I doubt we give up on THT unless we are getting back a really solid win now guy or another young guy that may fit a bit better

PJ Washington?

[donnieme]

I mean, that's 100% on Lebron and AD. Basically LAL had Hield route and Westbrook routeб and Lebron/AD chose Westbrook. Pelinka just overpaid in the trade like he usually does

I don’t care what the reports say. I’ll never believe that LeBron wanted Westbrook. LeBron is a very smart basketball mind. Their games don’t mesh well. Hield is a perfect LeBron ball player. Great from 3 and loves jacking up shots. I’ll always believe AD wanted Westbrook and LeBron agreed to keep him happy. It’s the same reason why they’ve trotted out a useless center next to AD for the past three seasons. Do you think LeBron really likes not having spacing?

I think that Lebron, and most bball players, think about the basketball not the way you do. He's the best player of all time and thinks that he can fit with any other good player. Being a great basketball mind on the court and off the court are two separate things. Do you really think that Lebron would rather play with Brogdon or VanVleet instead of Westbrook? No way

Let's be frank, choosing Westbrook over hield could only have been done by one or both of Lebron and AD. Pelinka probably wouldn't be having in depth talks with the Kings about Hield if he wanted to pursue Westbrook in the first place, something altered his decisionmaking.

If it doesnt work out Lebron should take some blame, AD as well, in that meeting the 3 players had where they discussed how they would play he reportedly committed to playing center, he already knew Westbrook needed spacing, wasn't even up to a couple weeks where he was thanking Pelinka for signing Deandre Jordan and even blessing Rondo's return, two of the worse roleplayer archtypes to fit around Westbrook. Should have never asked for Westbrook if you weren't going all in on the sacrifices needed. Jordan left the Nets for minutes and Dwight is always going to play so that leaves only 10-15mins where AD plays center, not sufficient if Westbrook is to play 30 minutes.

[jalengreen]

It's weird because LeBron and the Lakers played against the Rockets in the playoffs and clearly sought to exploit Westbrook's glaring weaknesses. And then turned around and said "yeah we want him on the team now" ??

[The High Cyde]

Maybe it was AD, more so than LeBron, Davis was probably unhappy with getting absolutely no entry passes or lobs from Dennis Schroder, and so he wanted one of the best passing points in the league. It’s feasible, but LeBron should’ve steered him away from that, who knows really.

[Mos_Heat]

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Damn, that's a brutal start of the season. Knee bruses are also can linger for months