Should the Lakers trade LeBron James?
No, Magic and Pelinka should not trade LeBron James over the summer.
LeBron James’s decline has been overblown. He’s still a top-10 player in the NBA, capable of being the best player on a championship team.
The Lakers roster this season has more flaws than a kindergarten student’s drawing of an elephant. Magic and Pelinka made the mistake of signing KCP, Rondo, McGee, and Stephenson; 4 players who don’t play good defense and who aren’t proficient at shooting the ball from deep.
Despite the massive defects of the Lakers current roster the Purple and Gold still had a 20-14 record before LeBron, then Lonzo, and then Ingram got injured.
LeBron’s had a very bad attitude this season, but he’s been known as a “coach killer” for the better part of the decade now. Despite the way James consistently disrespects his head coaches, his teams have still managed to win at the highest level in the NBA.
The majority of the chemistry issues that have plagued the Purple and Gold for at least half the season were Magic and Pelinka’s fault. They were the ones who publicly tried to trade half the team for Anthony Davis. That was the leak that sunk the ship.
Magic and Pelinka should keep LeBron, Ingram, Ball, Kuzma, Hart, and Wagner. Then, this offseason they should try to actually build a good roster around the six players I just mentioned. They must construct the Lakers team for next season by signing a top-tier free agent, then picking up a defensive-minded center, and finally landing at least two good 3-and-D players.