NBA – “The Lakers are stupid for doing this with LeBron”
The Lakers won against the Suns this Friday. And although fans are satisfied with this victory against a direct competitor in the West, one subject continues to fuel discussions: that of the use of LeBron James by Darvin Ham.
For their second match of the season, against the Suns, the Lakers managed to obtain a precious victory this Thursday (100-95). Victory that they owe largely to LeBron James, once again imperial at the very end of the match. Indeed, the 10 points scored by the King in the 4th quarter allowed his team to overcome a collective led by Kevin Durant and his 39 units.
LeBron’s “load management” shattered in the US
Despite his 38 years, LeBron is definitely not willing to leave his throne vacant and has shown everyone that his thirst for victories remains unchanged. However, Angelinos fans have recently questioned Darvin Ham’s questionable management of his playing time. ClutchPoints journalist Gerard Angelo Samillano thus delivered an analysis which tends to undermine the plans of the Purple & Gold coach:
The Lakers are stupid for limiting LeBron’s minutes, and here’s why. First of all, the goal of each team during the regular season is to win games to qualify for the playoffs. Load management for the playoffs could backfire because you would sabotage your team’s chances of winning. After all, you put your best player on the bench longer.
The second reason is that the Lakers need LeBron more than ever. After last season’s playoffs, there was hope that the team could lean more on Austin Reaves to create. (…) Reaves, along with Anthony Davis, should be the ones carrying LeBron now. However, the harsh reality facing the Lakers is that a healthy LeBron remains their best chance to win.
For Samillano, it is without a shadow of a doubt a bad move on Ham’s part to rest the King during the regular season. Age may be a parameter to take into account, but LBJ remains in the eyes of the journalist the keystone of the Lakers system. The LA coach would therefore have every interest in calling on his leader more, to which the latter said he was ready to respond after the success against Phoenix:
He asked me if I could play the whole last quarter. Looking at the clock, the score and taking into account the nature of the match, the answer was easy for me. I know how hard I worked to be able to play full quarters or that sort of thing. And I understand that we have a system in place, but the circumstances of the evening invited me to overlook it.
Cautious regarding LeBron James and his minutes played this season, the coaching of Darvin Ham is more debated than ever at the Lakers. For supporters, the King must be used more than 30 minutes per game if the franchise hopes to qualify for the playoffs.
