The Big Lead

LeBron James blames 'the way our team is constructed' for Lakers' limitations

By Joe Lago

Jan 17, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) reacts after a foul call against the Brooklyn Nets at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Jan 17, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) reacts after a foul call against the Brooklyn Nets at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
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Groundhog Day is Sunday, Feb. 2, when denizens of a tiny Pennsylvania town and curious tourists gather around to witness the winter-weather predictive powers of a groundhog's actions.

In a tradition similar to Punxsutawney Phil emerging to determine whether there will be six more weeks of winter, LeBron James has already acknowledged the misgivings of the Los Angeles Lakers' roster. As has been the case for most of his time in Hollywood, his displeasure has surfaced to signal to the front office it's time for meaningful change before the NBA trading deadline.

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Head coach JJ Redick pointed to the Lakers' small margin for error after Sunday's 116-102 loss to the rival Los Angeles Clippers at Intuit Dome. When the Los Angeles Times' Dan Woike asked James for his opinion on Redick's assessment, he not surprisingly agreed.

"We don't have a choice. That's the way our team is constructed," James said on the Lakers not being afforded the luxury of making mistakes. "We have to. We have to play close to perfect basketball.

"We know the game is never going to be a 48-minute perfect basketball game. But we can't combat it on multiple possessions in a row. Or if we turn the ball over, we have to do a better job at that.

"If we're making aggressive turnover plays where we're trying to make the right play to a teammate but ... defensively, we can't have breakdowns. If the coaching staff has a game plan for us, we can't break down during the game with that."

Translation: LeBron is unhappy with the roster, and changes need to be made as soon as possible. Voicing his concern to the media is a much quicker way to get his urgent message to Rob Pelinka, the Lakers' vice president of basketball operations and general manager.

The Lakers entered Monday in sixth place in the Western Conference at 22-18, a game and a half behind the 24-17 Clippers. However, in order to contend for a championship, Pelinka will have to bring in reinforcements before the Feb. 6 deadline, such as Brooklyn Nets wing Cam Johnson.

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