Los Angeles Lakers: Is it a good idea to start LeBron James at point guard?

Is it wise for the Los Angeles Lakers to start LeBron James at point guard?

A side effect of the Los Angeles Lakers putting all of their chips into the Kawhi Leonard sweepstakes, meant that the team missed out on a majority of the top point guard options in free agency. As a result, the Lakers’ point guard rotation is shall we say; less than ideal. Barring any unforeseen trades or buyouts the Lakers are going into the 2020 season with Rajon Rondo, Alex Caruso and Quinn Cook as the only ‘true’ point guards on the roster.

Rondo has shown flashes of being a serviceable starting point guard, but his lack of shooting and ball dominance makes him a poor fit alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Cook is a great spot-up shooter, but his height makes him a liability on the defensive end. Caruso would seem to be the obvious choice to land the starting spot, but he’s just not quite there yet developmentally.

Given all of this, it’s no surprise the team decided to just slot LeBron at PG full-time. The question is whether or not this is a good idea? To make the LeBron point guard experience work, the Lakers need to have two guards on the floor capable of guarding opposing back-courts as you don’t want LeBron chasing around smaller, quicker guards all game.

Luckily, the Lakers have a variety of defenders to put next to their new point-guard. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is the team’s most capable point guard defender so he’ll most likely be in the starting lineup. Danny Green has the size, length, and mobility to guard opposing shooting guards and small forwards.

In addition, they also have Avery Bradley — who for all of his offensive shortcomings, is still a capable defender — and rookie Talen Horton-Tucker in a reserve role. Having at least two of these four players on the floor at any one time would allow LeBron to defend the opposing team’s least threatening wing player, giving him all the energy he needs to run the offense.

I think people are getting too caught up with the idea of ‘positions’ and the need to shoe-horn every player into one. The league is quickly trending towards position-less basketball, where having the best five players on the floor is more important than what position they’re supposed to play.

LeBron is the embodiment of this philosophy. He’s built like a power forward, moves like a wing player, and plays like a point guard. In reality, announcing LeBron at the point guard position is more style than substance, since he plays de facto point guard in most of the lineups he’s in. He’ll still be the team’s nominal small-forward on the defensive end.

Having a player like LeBron gives the Lakers a unique opportunity to pull off a move like this, and the team was clearly constructed to fit around this new LeBron-centric offense.

With a multitude of knock-down three-point shooters in Green, KCP, Cook, Daniels, and Kuzma, along with a lob-threat in McGee, and one of the most dynamic big men in Anthony Davis — LeBron has everything a point guard would need. Now it’s up to him and Frank Vogel to make these pieces fit.