Shaquille O’Neal thinks it’s time for LeBron James to take a step back on the court and let his teammates carry the scoring load.
Shaquille O’Neal didn’t hold back while discussing what the Lakers need to do under the tenure of new head coach JJ Redick. One of his key suggestions was for LeBron James to take a step back offensively and put a bigger load upon Anthony Davis and Austin Reaves to carry the offense.
“If I was LeBron, being that I already have all the records, I would pass it to AD. I would demand AD — because listen, LeBron can still do what he does, but, ‘I don’t need to have the ball all the time. I don’t need to score all the points. So, AD I need you to score all the points. Austin Reaves, you can be No. 2. I can just be the old Magic Johnson-style point guard and keep everybody involved and just keep this thing going.’”
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LeBron has been publicly lobbying for Anthony Davis to become the team’s bonafide no. 1 option for a few years now. He openly called Davis the team’s primary option last offseason and encouraged the Lakers to bring in a coach with Davis’ abilities in mind. But with AD’s defensive load as well, it will be hard for him to take greater responsibility as a scorer and preserve his health.
Austin Reaves is a talented combo guard, but his offensive skills aren’t nearly elite or consistent enough for him to be an option the Lakers prioritize over LeBron. He could have a more featured role in the offense compared to what Ham gave him last season, but the ceiling for Reaves seems to be a player who’d average 20 points.
LeBron comfortably led the Lakers in scoring last season, averaging 25.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 8.3 assists. Davis was arguably their best player due to his two-way impact but he averaged 24.7 points, 12.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 2.3 blocks.
Reaves fought with an inconsistent role, even getting benched at points of the season, but averaged 15.9 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 5.5 assists by the end.
LeBron Thinks He Can Still Win Another Title With The Lakers
LeBron gave an interview to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin at the start of Team USA’s training camp where he made it clear he believes his Lakers are still contending for a championship.
“‘Cause we’ve done it before. We still have two guys who commit every single day, myself and (Anthony Davis). We commit to excellence and commit to winning. We’re not that far off. We were one year removed from the Western Conference Finals. This past year didn’t go as well as we would like, but we’re not that far off. There are so many great teams in the league, in the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference, but we don’t see that we’re that far off anyone anyways.”
James is still producing at a high level, but Davis needs to make it unquestionable that this is his team with James as his co-star. Expecting Reaves to have better production than LeBron is foolish, but James could rediscover a winning formula if he returns to playing point guard for the franchise and prioritizing the success of others.
The Lakers 2020 Championship, which James referred to in the interview, was won on the back of LeBron playing as a point guard that season. Maybe that is what the Lakers need, especially as James enters his 22nd NBA season.