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“It’s gonna be a tough road trip” : LeBron James ahead of playing away for four games After a clinical start to the season for the LA Lakers courtesy of a six-game winning streak, they now find themselves in a bit of an odd spot as they have struggled in recent games, leading to being on the losing end in four out of five games. Those losses comprise of Orlando Magic, Denver Nuggets, Phoenix Suns, and the final addition being on Friday against Oklahoma City. Safe to say, the alarm bells have started ringing and the Lakers’ dream start needs to be revisited from scratch. James, the leader of the Lakers spoke after their loss to Thunder this Friday about how to go on about things ahead, with the overall schedule in December not helping their case at all. “You got to figure it out, lean on each other. If you don’t have it, you don’t have the energy, lean on the guy next to you. So it’s gonna be a tough road trip first starting Utah, back-to-back Minnesota, Miami and then Atlanta, last game of the trip. So we gotta be ready to go.” James said. Lakers look to start the month on a high note with a win against Utah Jazz The California-based team’s first challenge away will be to put away Utah Jazz, but it will be tough because the team is facing many challenges and an away game is not their strongest suit, looking back previously. But the same cannot be said for King James, as his availability shall be the key for Lakers to finally end their winning drought. The 39-year-old had an off day against OKC Thunders, but has enjoyed solid runs against Jazz throughout his career. LeBron James averages 28.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and 7.2 assists in 41 matches against Jazz, with his best performance coming during his Cleveland days where he scored an astounding 51 points back in 2006. After their match on Sunday, the Lakers will have to straight away travel to Minnesota to take on Anthony Edwards’s Timberwolves, and the outcome of both games will heavily depend on the 39-year-old’s availability and form as a hectic month awaits them starting today. Also Read: “That’s your parents over there, right” : LeBron James’s crazy ‘vision’ left Jared McCain in shock

“They were shocking him versus the quick blitz in some of his picking roles” : Lakers coach JJ Reddick defends LeBron James after frustrating loss to Denver Nuggets Once again, Nikola Jovic and the Nuggets have comfortably overpowered the Lakers 127-102, as the game in itself seemed finished by the third quarter where the California based team managed only 15 points. Jokic as usual, shined with a whopping 34 points, 8 assists and 13 rebounds while no player from the Lakers, not even the King were able to get to 20 points. In their last 14 meetings, the Serbian’s squad has won 13 of them and it feels like the Lakers have no answer whatsoever to their offence. But this time, turnovers were the biggest issue the Lakers faced, as this concern has been slowly creeping up to them for a while now. When asked about this, head coach JJ Reddick did not mind being crystal clear. “Have you seen any causation as to what is occurring? Either within his role in the offense or the other players’ roles in the offense? Is that what’s leading to his turnovers growing over the last week or so?” Reddick said. The Lakers actually had a 10-point lead by the end of the second quarter which made this loss even more disappointing for their fans as they ran riot on social media, and this time, even LeBron James was not spared of criticism. But the Lakers coach did not want to hear any of this discourse, and quickly backed up his star player. “They were shocking him versus the quick blitz in some of his picking roles.” Reddick defended LeBron James. “I think some of that with tonight, sometimes high usage players can kind of go through stretches where they do have high turnover games, and you have to live with that.” the Lakers coach added. “It’s not just players not executing the game plan, it’s all of us” : JJ Reddick wants the whole Lakers to take credit for this loss The American coach’s very candid post-match press continued with him outing basically the whole of Lakers, as this was a second straight loss and he was obviously not delighted with the subpar performance. LeBron James was the only exception as he managed 18 points with 7 assists and 6 rebounds, a ‘bad’ performance considering his standards, but even Anthony Davis could not go past 14 points, as he got completely outmatched by Jokic. “We didn’t execute it,” “Me and my staff will take some ownership of that as well. It’s not just players not executing the game plan, it’s all of us. We’re all on the same team, we all want the same outcome. We all want to be a good defensive team, so we’ve got to figure out that together.”  Nonetheless, the LA Lakers now need to bounce back in some fashion, as they play the Phoenix Suns next in the group stage of the NBA Cup. Their defence needs to be sharp as the likes of Kevin Durant and Devin Booker possess the threat of scoring out of nowhere. Also Read: “That’s your parents over there, right” : LeBron James’s crazy ‘vision’ left Jared McCain in shock

“A lot of people don’t understand why I say thank you LeBron” : Shaquille O’ Neal reveals the reason he thanks LeBron James for his custom supercars collection Shaq is obviously a big dude, one of the biggest the NBA has ever seen. This makes the LA Lakers legend the victim of fitting into a few normal circumstances, like being unable to sit into supercars like Ferrari or Lamborghini due to their low roof (well, normal for their standards). Shaquille O’ Neal had that issue, but is now past it, thanks to LeBron James, even if it was unintentional. “Only time I wanted to be small is when I walk by and see these guys in little sports cars… like the Ferraris and Lamborghinis. So, I was this idiot that would buy the sports car knowing I can’t fit and then having to pay extra… to make it fit.” Shaq once explained his struggles fitting into luxury cars. The Lakers legend now purchases custom supercars which are perfectly made just for him, through a company called Effortless Motors. Shaq now possesses four cars from them, which includes three of Tesla’s Cybertruck, and a Mercedes Benz Sprinter. But how he got to know about the company is a funny story, which involves the King. Shaq revealed that the dealership’s owner is a massive Lakers fan, who thought it would be a good business move to let people know that LeBron James purchases his cars from them, without his consent. But the 39-year-old caught on to this quickly, and outed them on social media saying that they are ‘clout chasers’. “A lot of people don’t understand why I say thank you LeBron. One I love the brother, greatest friend ever, Ahmad here had a little young kid secretary that they built the car and the kid thought it would be a great idea to say ‘Hey let’s say LeBron bought the car. You know they are in LA.” But Shaquille O’ Neal did not mind this, as he quickly got in touch with the owner and has been buying his favourite cars from them since June. “‘I love the Lakers, I love LeBron, I don’t want to have any problems.’ I was like, ‘I understand.’”  “Can’t buy another car, can’t buy another boat, can’t buy no more jewelry, can’t buy no more cars, even though I just bought a new Tesla. I can’t. I’m done.” This statement did not age well, as he bought three more cars from the dealership. The 52-year-old also likes to flex on social media about his luxurious cars, which now seems more like a second hobby to him after his podcast. The Lakers legend seems to enjoy his all-black Cybertruck the most, and more cars might be added soon to his collection. Also Read: “That’s your parents over there, right” : LeBron James’s crazy ‘vision’ left Jared McCain in shock

“That’s your parents over there, right” : LeBron James’s crazy ‘vision’ left Jared McCain in shock Apart from his insane vision on the court, it seems like LeBron James uses his superpowers to the max off-court as well. Although he has flexed his vision before, we saw a unique example of this during the Lakers and 76ers game, as the King surprised youngster Jared McCain during the middle of the game. The youngster post-match revealed that during his brief conversation with LeBron James, he actually spotted his parents in the stands. This is quite impressive from the King, as he barely knows the rookie. It also makes for a proud moment for McCain and his family, who got recognized by one of the greats himself. “He actually recognized my parents were in the crowd, and he was like, ‘I see them over there. Keep going.’ Yeah. Just cool to see someone who, again, each game is like someone I’ve watched for so long. Especially him.” said McCain (via Ky Carlin of the Sixers Wire). After this heartwarming interaction, James also gifted his signed jersey to the youngster with the message, “Continue to block out the BS noise! Nothing better than working hard and simply being you! Love young king.” This of course comes after McCain has been the victim of trolling due to his presence on social media. As for LeBron James, he shows time and again just how good of a mentor he has been to the next generation of players. Jared McCain continues his impressive debut season performances Only 20 years old, McCain was the standout recruit from California’s Centennial High School, and despite the poor start to the season from the Philadelphia 76ers, Jared McCain has been the most positive asset for them. The promising youngster scored eighteen points in the game, as he showcased his innate ability of scoring and more than average playmaking. The young guard’s potential is for everyone to see, and despite the limited amount of minutes he gets, he has more than proven his worth already in the NBA. As for the 76ers, things are not looking the best as key players Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxy are off injured, while high profile signing Paul George is yet to provide anything of significance. But as things eventually work out in some or the other way, this gives McCain the perfect opportunity to shine further and become the breakout star of the season. Also Read: “It’s hard to tell yourself everything is going to be fine when we literally didn’t do anything wrong” : Jordan Chiles after narrowly missing out on the bronze medal at the Paris Olympics

“The criticism he gets is unfair” : Bronny James’ teammate pushes his ability after an unconvincing debut in the G-League When you are the son of LeBron James, the spotlight will follow you everywhere, disregarding the fact if you have performed well or not. As many speculated, Bronny James has been having a hard time getting acquainted to the NBA, with many doubting if the youngster will actually last going forward. Bronny James’ G-League debut meanwhile provided more questions than answers. The 20-year-old scored just 6 points with 4 assists and 3 rebounds with a field goal percentage of a modest 20. Fans have actively participated on social media to provide their take on Bronny’s performances since the start of the season, and the general consensus is that he is not up for the big leagues just yet. But his G-League teammate Quincy Olivari thinks otherwise, who addressed to the media about the whole Bronny situation and believes that he has much more to offer than people think. “I’m a big advocate on pushing that he’s a great player” : Quincy Olivari on Bronny James Quincy Olivari on the contrary had a spectacular game against the Salt Lake City Stars on Saturday. In their 110-96 victory, Olivari scored 28 points and 10 rebounds, much to the joy of the Lakers fans. Although, comparisons started to occur between Olivari and James, with some believing that the former should receive more playing time than the latter. But despite his MVP performance which completely outshined Bronny, Olivari supported him in front of the media, indirectly saying that they need to go easier on the criticism and that he was pleased to see him having fun.  “I was happy that Bronny got a chance to show the world that he can play. I’m a big advocate for pushing that he is a great basketball player, and the criticism he gets is unfair. To see him go out there and have fun with Max Lewis was fun to see,” Olivari said. Quincy Olivari has now had a couple of standout performances including the pre-season, and Lakers coach JJ Reddick will definitely have his eyes on the 23-year-old for the upcoming matches in hopes to overcome their poor start to the season, and to provide LeBron James and co. some much needed firepower.

“I can’t wait for them to make history” : Anthony Davis opens up about being on the same team as LeBron and Bronny James News regarding the first ever father-son duo in Lebron and Bronny James have been the highlight of the NBA this summer. The Lakers superstar, who recently admitted that everything else he now does is just ‘extra credit’ in his legendary career, is also acting way different in team training sessions, as revealed by his teammates. Apart from being one of the best players in the league, LeBron James is obviously a proud father as well. Teaming up with his soon to be 20-year-old son is just another boost of motivation for the King, and he is most definitely going to show up, even more than he used to. Adding a gentle reminder that a 39-year-old James last season averaged 25.7 points with 7.3 rebounds and 8.3 assists. As far as the LA Lakers are concerned, the team are in high spirits ahead of a big season, courtesy of the father-son duo. Although the decision to hire JJ Reddick as head coach initially turned out to have a mixed reaction from fans, the American, who is just about the same age as LeBron, has been a pleasant surprise in the dressing room so far as well. With the Los Angeles based side being the talk of the town this summer, one of the veterans of the squad was asked about the changes he has felt this time around compared to previous years, during the much-awaited media day. “It just means the world to LeBron. It’s a different level of joy” : Anthony Davis reflects on what it means to LeBron having Bronny in the team Anthony Davis, who goes way back with LeBron, revealed how it feels seeing the duo practice and play together in training camps after all these years. Davis also mentioned the ‘pure joy’ he sees on the King’s face nowadays. “It’s still surreal that he’s on the same team as his dad. And I get to be part of it, witnessing every practice, every game, every moment they share, at least for his first year. I can’t wait for them to make history when they officially step on the floor together. It’s been amazing to watch so far,” said Davis during media day.  “It just means the world to LeBron. It’s a different level of joy,” added the 31-year-old. Drafted 55th out of the 58 picks, it is quite clear that the Lakers acquired Bronny majorly for increasing their revenue margin rather than wanting him for his actual ability. But even after averaging a measly 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists in his freshman college year, Bronny has been fully accumulated in the team dynamics. The 19-year-old was also seen training extra hard with his father throughout the summer. The road to the 24/25 season has been a perfect one so far for the father-son duo. Although the spotlight will be on young Bronny initially, fans worldwide are already speculating if season no.22 is finally going to be the last one for no.23. With an emotional season coming up nonetheless, LeBron James is definitely going to show his son how it is done in the big stages. Also Read: “He will probably be the number one candidate for MVP” : Gilbert Arenas makes bold prediction about Luka Doncic ahead of the new NBA season

“That was the year I finally stopped hating him” : Austin Reaves mentions the time when he started admiring LeBron James Over his two decade long run in the NBA, LeBron James was surely to make some enemies along the way. The more he got better, the more hate he used to receive. But surprisingly, one player who revealed was not fond of him earlier was his own teammate, Lakers shooting guard Austin Reaves. The American, despite being in the King’s team, has been very open about the fact that he was never the biggest fan of him. In addition, NBA Twitter did what they do the best, and found out Reaves’s social media posts back in 2012 last year, where he was actively pursuing an agenda against the Lakers superstar. Reaves, who was only 13 then, used to mock James on social media for not having an NBA Championship to his name. NBA Twitter had hilarious reactions to the 26-year-old’s social media posts, and also suggested that it was ‘okay’ to hate LeBron James, who was part of Miami Heat back then, as it was a trend. But sure enough, the King ended up winning his first title and MVP award that same summer. “Everybody loves LeBron, but he gets so much hate” : Austin Reaves In a recent interview, the 26-year-old revealed the year he finally stopped hating on the 39-year-old, and that since he is now teammates with LeBron James, he asks him a lot of questions, more than he would prefer to answer. But the American cannot help himself, as he said not everyone gets the chance to play with and ‘pick the brain’ of the greatest basketball player of time. “I’ve asked LeBron a lot of questions, more than he probably wants me to, to be honest. But when you’re playing with the greatest of all time, how do you not try to pick his brain? I’ve asked him what he thought his greatest year was, not in terms of championships but in terms of peak athleticism, skill, and knowledge. For me, I think his best year was the year they lost to KD (Kevin Durant) and Steph (Stephen Curry) in the Finals. That was the year I finally stopped hating him,” said Reaves (via BustaJack Golf). The American also defended James’s 2020 NBA Championship victory, who many term as a ‘Mickey Mouse ring’, due to the season happening during the pandemic. He said that if someone else other than the 39-year-old won it that year, nobody would have batted an eye. Reaves has also stated his opinion about this topic in ‘The Draymond Green Show’ previously, and believes it was one of the hardest championship wins ever due to players not knowing if they will even return to play the remainder of the season. “It’s not a Mickey Mouse ring… everybody had an equal playing field, I think it’s the same as every other year. I just think if Bron doesn’t win it, then nobody says anything. Everybody hates Bron. Actually, everybody loves LeBron, but he gets so much hate,” said the 26-year-old. Austin Reaves is probably right, as in the 2019-20 season, James averaged 27.6 points, 10.8 rebounds, 8.8 assists, and 1.2 steals per game in the playoffs to lead the Lakers to their first championship victory after a decade, and 17th overall. Also Read: “He will probably be the number one candidate for MVP” : Gilbert Arenas makes bold prediction about Luka Doncic ahead of the new NBA season