Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr said that LeBron James is “probably the best athlete to ever walk this planet.”
Golden State Warriors coach, Steve Kerr, had high praise for LeBron James in the wake of losing to the Los Angeles Lakers 120-94 earlier this week. Kerr–who spent 15 years as a player in the NBA while winning multiple championships alongside Michael Jordan–said that LeBron is “probably the best athlete to ever walk this planet.”
It’s one thing to call someone the best athlete to ever play in the NBA since it first opened for business in 1946. It’s a whole different measure of praise to suggest that LeBron is the greatest athlete in the history of the human race. But that’s exactly where Kerr went with his compliments of James and you can count Richard Jefferson as someone who agrees.
While appearing on Jalen and Jacoby, the longtime NBA veteran offered his rationale for supporting Kerr’s claim.
Steve Kerr said that LeBron is “Probably the best athlete to ever walk this planet.” Find out if Richard Jefferson and Jacoby agree. pic.twitter.com/aAaIUcXnYl
“Well this is what I’m going to say–yes,” Richard Jefferson said when asked if he agreed with Steve Kerr on LeBron being the best athlete to ever live. “From this standpoint. I think basketball players are the best athletes on the planet. Start there.
“And I think, look, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, best basketball players, but as an athlete, LeBron is physically stronger than all of those guys. So I think Steve Kerr has a little bit of validation. Mind you, this guy also played with Michael Jordan.”
Beyond Michael and Kobe, there is most likely a contingent of older NBA fans who might also suggest that Wilt Chamberlain was the greatest athlete to ever live. But it’s certainly fair at this point to say that LeBron has earned a place in that conversation. During his 17th NBA season, James is currently leading the league in assists with 11.1 while also offering 23.9 points and eight rebounds and showing no signs of slowing down.
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James celebrated his friend Carmelo Anthony getting back into the NBA on Thursday.
One of the most disappointing teams in the early going of the NBA season made a big move on Thursday night, one that got on the radar of LeBron James as one of his closest friends in the league made his way back into the NBA.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Thursday night that the 4-8 Portland Trail Blazers agreed to bring in 10-time NBA All-Star Carmelo Anthony, which brought about a response of enthusiasm from NBA fans and of course, the rest of the Banana Boat crew. Dwyane Wade shared his reaction that it was ‘about time’ and LeBron echoed his friend’s tweet.
For those who are wondering, the first game between LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony is scheduled for December 6th in Portland when the Los Angeles Lakers visit the Portland Trail Blazers. They will also play each other about three weeks after that in Portland on Dec. 28.
After it looked for nearly a year like LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony would never play on the same court again, that chance will come sooner than anybody expected.
The Los Angeles Lakers will likely get Anthony Davis back in the line-up when they host the Sacramento Kings on Friday night.
The Los Angeles Lakers should get back one of their key players when they host former head coach Luke Walton and the Sacramento Kings on Friday night at Staples Center.
Anthony Davis is officially listed as probable, meaning he has a 75% chance to play, according to Kyle Goon of the Southern California News Group. However, while the Lakers will likely get back Davis on Friday they will likely be without reserve guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope who is questionable after turning his ankle in the closing moments of Wednesday’s win over the Golden State Warriors. However, getting Davis back will likely be more than enough against a Kings group missing De’Aaron Fox.
The Lakers have listed Kentavious Caldwell-Pope as questionable with his left ankle injury for tomorrow against the Kings.
While the Caldwell-Pope injury was concerning, the Lakers did get some solid contributions from other players who will have to step in for however long KCP has to sit out. Quinn Cook played nearly 25 minutes while Alex Caruso eclipsed 27 minutes on Wednesday.
Caldwell-Pope’s absence will call for more minutes from the Lakers younger guards, but Caruso, Cook and even Troy Daniels have proven they can step in to produce in a pinch at various points so far this season.
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James credited his teammates ability to convert opportunities for his NBA lead in assists.
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As a LeBron Wire reader, you may not be surprised to see that LeBron James is leading the NBA in assists. It was the leading preseason prediction for our site heading into the season and James has made good on the play in the preseason, using the arrival of Anthony Davis and improved outside shooting to become the current NBA assist leader.
James has tons of NBA accolades and statistical achievements on his resume. But leading the NBA in assists is something he’s never done before. A big reason is the addition of Davis, who gave James an efficient volume scorer — the likes of which he has never played before.
But James wanted to credit the entire team for his statistical accolades, telling ESPN’s Dave McMenamin:
I’m just trying to play within the system of what we’re trying to do in the game plan, and get my shooters and get my bigs opportunities. I don’t get the assists if my teammates don’t make the shots. That’s what it all boils down to. So they deserve all the credit.
This is nothing new for James, who has taken great pride in creating opportunities for his teammates. Even though James Harden is generally associated most with creating 3-point shots these days, ESPN analyst Kirk Goldsberry found that nobody had assisted on more 3-pointers in the past decade than LeBron.
What I’m Hearing: Mark Medina spoke with members of the Los Angeles Lakers about what future plans look like for keeping Anthony Davis healthy throughout the season.
What I’m Hearing: Mark Medina spoke with members of the Los Angeles Lakers about what future plans look like for keeping Anthony Davis healthy throughout the season.
Paul admitted on the latest episode of “Cold As Balls” with Kevin Hart that being dealt by Houston was “eye-opening” and said he felt “stabbed in the back.”
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Chris Paul may have orchestrated his trade from the LA Clippers to the Houston Rockets back in 2017 but apparently he wasn’t as prepared to move on from the Rockets this summer.
Despite a rumored rift with Rockets star James Harden, during the latest episode of Kevin Hart’s show “Cold As Balls,” Paul admitted that he didn’t see a trade from Houston coming. Kevin Hart asked if Paul felt like the situation was “a little eye-opening” or whether he felt “stabbed in the back.”
“Absolutely,” said Paul. “This last situation was one of them.”
Paul added:
GM there in Houston, he don’t owe me nothing and (when it comes to trades in the NBA, teams will) do whatever they want to do.
The comments come around the 2:55-minute mark.
As Yahoo Sports points out, the trade from Houston is just another memorable event in Paul’s NBA career that includes the banana boat, the failed trade to the Lakers and the fight with Rajon Rondo.
Since landing in Oklahoma City, Paul has been the subject of continual trade rumors. It is reasonable to believe that, should he be dealt to another team, he would see this one coming.
Through 11 games, Paul is averaging 15.3 points and 5.5 assists for the Thunder.
LeBron James had a solid night as the Los Angeles Lakers notched a win without superstar forward Anthony Davis on Wednesday.
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LeBron James had 23 points and 12 assists on Wednesday night to help the Los Angeles Lakers hold off a depleted Golden State Warriors squad on Wednesday night.
LeBron’s performance in the 120-94 victory was one of several that helped the Lakers overcome the absence of starting forward Anthony Davis, who missed Wednesday’s game due to shoulder and rib injuries.
Kyle Kuzma scored 22 points in the spot-start for Davis, going 7-of-12 from the field. Former Warrior JaVale McGee also had his best game of the season: 18 points, 17 rebounds and three blocks.
As for Golden State, former Lakers draft pick D’Angelo Russell led the way with 21 points. And while the Warriors made the Lakers sweat at times, they were out of winning range with plenty of time left for the Lakers to seal the deal.
The Lakers did get another kind a scare late in the game when Kentavious Caldwell-Pope went down with an apparent ankle injury. Luckily for them, the Lakers will have a few more days at home, with their next game being at Staples Center on Nov. 15 against the Sacramento Kings.
Anthony Davis is officially going to sit out Wednesday’s game for the Los Angeles Lakers against the Golden State Warriors.
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Star Los Angeles Lakers big man Anthony Davis has officially been ruled out of Wednesday night’s matchup with a much-diminished Golden State Warriors group, according to Yahoo Sports’ Chris Haynes.
Earlier today, doubt was cast on the six-time All-Star’s availability for the contest, due primarily to a rib injury sustained in Tuesday’s win over the Phoenix Suns. With forward Kyle Kuzma having returned from an ankle injury sustained in FIBA World Cup play this summer, Davis’ presence may be being viewed as superfluous given the opponent at hand.
Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis (shoulder and rib soreness) will not play tonight against the Golden State Warriors, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
However, with X-rays coming back negative, it appears the sorry state of their opponent’s roster and the potential for a more serious injury playing in a game that should be easily winnable without Davis seems to be playing a role in the news the Chicago native will be sitting Wednesday night.
With a long season still ahead and one of the West’s thinner frontcourt rotations, a cautious approach is absolutely a wise move. Given Davis typically misses roughly a tenth of the season or more to injury even in a good year, preserving the critical big man’s health for more difficult regular-season matchups, particularly when they aren’t on the back end of a back-to-back.
With a relatively easy slate of games ahead for the rest of the month, facing struggling and rebuilding franchises like the Sacramento Kings, Atlanta Hawks, Memphis Grizzlies, Oklahoma City Thunder, New Orleans Pelicans and Washington Wizards should allow the Lakers to play their star players limited minutes, minimizing the need for load management until December.
After being drafted by the Lakers in 2015, D’Angelo Russell will face the team that drafted him for the first time as a Warrior.
In 2015, The Los Angeles Lakers selected D’Angelo Russell with the second overall pick in the NBA Draft. Russell had a widely publicized up-and-down career with the club.
As a Laker, Russell averaged 14.3 points per game and four assists per game, shooting 40.8 percent from the floor and 35.1 percent from three.
Two years after being drafted, the Lakers traded Russell and Timofey Mozgov to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Brook Lopez and the rights to Kyle Kuzma. Russell’s exit was fueled by former Laker president of basketball operations, Magic Johnson. Johnson said Russell wasn’t a “leader” after his Snapchat incident with Nick Young.
Now, in 2019, Russell is suiting up as one of the leaders of the Golden State Warriors against the team that drafted him for the first time.
Since leaving Los Angeles, Russell has faced the Lakers four times in his career, currently averaging 18.8 points per game against them.
Russell’s best night versus the Lakers came in December of 2018, where he scored 22 points and added 13 assists. Russell knocked down four triples in the game. He’ll look to add to those numbers as he’s currently on a hot streak. In the last four games, the young guard is averaging 36.2 points per game and seven assists over that span.
Earlier on Wednesday, it was reported that Anthony Davis would miss the contest. The superstar has been battling shoulder and rib soreness and was given the night off considering the Lakers will be playing on the second night of a back-to-back.
Without a doubt, Russell would like to score a win over his first time, especially as he suits up against them for the first time as a division rival.
For the Los Angeles Lakers to continue their winning ways, they will need consistently good performances from third-year forward Kyle Kuzma.
For the Los Angeles Lakers to continue their winning ways, they will need consistently good performances from third-year forward Kyle Kuzma.
The former Utah Utes star is the only first-round pick originally drafted by the Lakers who’s still on their roster. Their other recent selections are now on other teams, which helped them land LeBron James and Anthony Davis. As the only young member of their core still around, there were very high expectations for him heading into the season.
Change, of course, was inevitable as Los Angeles pivoted at head coach from Luke Walton to Frank Vogel. The addition of a bonafide superstar in Davis was certain to alter his role as well. Unfortunately, however, Kuzma was unable to play in the preseason to help his adjustment period, as he was recovering from an injury sustained while playing for Team USA.
Kyle Kuzma just talked to reporters for the first time since media day. “What this team needs is exactly what I worked on this summer. Gonna surprise a lot of people,” he said. Worked on being more of an on-ball playmaker, something he hasn’t been asked to do since high school
Before his 2019-20 debut, he said what the Lakers needed is “exactly” what he worked on in the offseason. Considering how much they gave up to land Davis, they are counting on him to be their third option on offense.
But upon his return, he was shooting below the league average mark of 45.3 percent from the field in his first five games back. Kuzma, himself, has spoken to the necessity for many players to get into a rhythm by literally watching the basketball going into the hoop (via Los Angeles Times):
“A lot of scorers, they always say just seeing the ball go in a couple of times, easy ones getting to the rim is definitely going to open a lot of things.”
Part of the blame for this was his shot selection, per Cleaning the Glass, as Kuzma had taken just 17 percent of his attempts within four feet of the rim. Compare that with his frequency in this zone as a rookie (34 percent) and last year (37 percent) and the difference is especially noteworthy.
Vogel recently noted Kuzma was still “finding his way” for where his shots would come from within their new-look style.
Kuzma had looked more like his normal self without Davis, averaging 25.7 points per 36 minutes without his new teammate. The bad news: he struggled to score alongside Davis, averaging just 11.6 points per 36 in his first five appearances this season alongside the big.
Then against the Phoenix Suns, he scored 21 points during the 16.5 minutes he was on the court with Davis. His shot chart shows far more reliance on looks closer to the basket to help supplement his three-pointers, which helped secure their victory over Phoenix. It was the scoring punch that Los Angeles needs when James and Davis are not able to provide it.
However, perhaps because he is recovering from injury, he still seems to be playing without as much aggression so far this season. The 24-year-old is averaging just 3.2 drives per game, significantly lower than his marks in 2017-18 (4.8) and in 2018-19 (6.0) as well. This will be another necessary addition for him as the season progresses.
Most surprising is that the 6-foot-9 forward still has not attempted his first dunk of the season. This was the most apparent during a possession against the Toronto Raptors in which he could have avoided a block if he had gone for a slam instead of a layup.
Even those have been few and far between, as Kuzma has 16 layups compared to 36 looks from beyond the arc. He has generally not even been near the basket, averaging just 1.3 paint touches per game. That is much lower than his marks both last season (2.5) and the year before (2.4).
Instead, the forward has been used more as a catch-and-shoot option for Los Angeles. He is averaging 0.91 dribbles and 1.88 seconds per touch, both a lot lower than what he recorded in his first two professional seasons.
Kuzma has focused on improving his jumper, working with coach Lethal Shooter to make him a more polished threat from beyond the arc. While the Lakers will need help spreading the floor for James and Davis and hope he can be of service in this regard, that cannot be the only facet of his game if he’s going to be their most-trusted third option.
If he can cut to the basket more often rather than just firing from downtown, he will be a more consistent and reliable option for Los Angeles.
