The NBA Finals are winding down and it’s been odd to not see LeBron competing at this time in the playoffs but here’s why I believe LeBron should look to capture a 5th MVP next season with Lakers. We could make it about him winnning a 5th NBA title next season but from the looks of it we just don’t know if Darvin Ham will be able to help coach the Lakers Big 3 of Russell Westbrook,LeBron James, and Anthony Davis to a title next season. No one knows if LeBron will sign yet another short-term extension with the Lakers before bolting whereever his son is drafted or will he just blatantly asked to be traded away from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Golden State Warriors to assure himself of catching Jordan’s 6 championships. The latter is unlikely as LeBron probably wants to be remembered as arguably the best Laker to don the purple and gold.
We would all put Kobe,Shaq,Magic,Wilt,West,and Kareem ahead of LeBron on the all-time ranking of former Laker greats but if LeBron can do the unthinkable and capture a 5th league MVP,break Kareem’s record, and add a 2nd title as a Laker next season we might have to put him ahead of West,Wilt,and Shaq at least. Kobe,Magic,and Kareem had very long tenures as Lakers and did more winning than Shaq,West,and Wilt in Laker uniforms and with 2 titles as a Laker LeBron will be on the Mount Rushmore of Laker legends. LeBron does not seem like he is ready to relocate, he is just expecting the Lakers organization to do their job before signing another extension with the franchise. With Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokoumpo both winning back to back MVP’s and superstar Luka Doncic looking like the odds on favorite for the award next season it will be far from easy for LeBron to win a 5th MVP but assuming Ham has LeBron’s best interest it I give it a 70 percent chance of it being possible.
If Westbrook is traded away LeBron’s chances will only increase as the ball will be in his hands a lot more allowing him to average close to 30 points per game along with his regular 7-8 rebounds and assists per game. Westbrook said his main objective this past season was to make the game as easy as possible for LeBron, the fit was awkward since Frank Vogel wasn’t much of an offensive wizard and former assistant Jason Kidd was no longer around to be in his ear about how to make it work offensively.
All in all LeBron did average 30 ppg with 8 rpg and 6 apg which are MVP level numbers and I’ll assume his points per game will drop due to Davis’s presence next season and new head coach Darvin Ham looking to have the Lakers play in a more structured offense but he could still average 27-28 ppg and have the Lakers as the number 1 seed in the West next season. Everyone is just expecting LeBron to go full steam ahead for Kareem’s record and use Westbrook as the scapegoat once again next season before possibly bolting next summer but who’s to say he doesn’t want to show us one last time why he was once a 4-time League MVP?, which is something no one has accomplished since former Bulls legend Michael Jordan.
To conclude LeBron has done the unthinkable before, he faced a 3-1 deficit seeing his legacy on the line and facing elimination to Steph Curry back to back seasons on the biggest stage and delivered with 3 heroic games to win the series. He was down 3-2 in Boston with his legacy on the line in search of his 1st title and delivered with a 45 point 15 rebound masterpiece to force a Game 7 where he helped the Heat get past his long-time nemesis the Celtics, he scored 25 straight points to get his Cavaliers in the Finals at the age of 22, he carried the Cavaliers on a magical run 2018 despite the exit of Kyrie Irving, the list goes on and time and time again LeBron has delivered. LeBron has gone under the radar mostly in Los Angeles, haters and critics will downplay his title with the Lakers in The Bubble but that’s just because he was the best player in The Bubble and they failed to see Kawhi dethrone him. LeBron wants to be remembered a Laker and I think a bounce back season like never before in his career is on the horizon, till next time.
D-NBA 