Los Angeles Lakers rumors: Frank Vogel shoots down LeBron James as point guard
Recent Los Angeles Lakers rumors about LeBron James starting at point guard was shot down by head coach Frank Vogel.
Los Angeles Lakers rumors have been rampant with NBA Free Agency in full swing. While the purple and gold didn’t win the Kawhi Leonard sweepstakes, they did recover quite well to round out the rest of the roster.
The Lakers’ roster is essentially full now, as they have one roster spot remaining. There will be plenty of debate about who will fill that spot, but we know, for the most part, who will be suiting up for the team this season.
With free agency essentially done, fans will now start discussing who should be in the starting lineup. LeBron James, Danny Green and Anthony Davis are locked into the starting five. Kyle Kuzma is likely to join them as well, but the fifth spot is up for debate.
Who fills that fifth spot will depend a lot on how James is deployed. Recently, there was a rumor floating around that James would be the starting point guard.
If that is the case, another perimeter player, such as Avery Bradley, should be in the starting lineup to help on the defensive end of the court. Asking James to chase around opposing point guards full-time would be a disaster waiting to happen.
However, we may not have to worry about that. During an appearance on ESPN when the Lakers were preparing to face the New York Knicks during the Las Vegas Summer League, Vogel shot down reports of James starting at point guard.
Frank Vogel on ESPN just shot down the LeBron starting point guard rumor. “There have been no decisions made on our starting lineup. No imminent plan to start LeBron at the point guard spot. A lot of different lineup and combinations have been discussed but it’s way too early.”
— Daniel Starkand (@DStarkand) July 11, 2019
That makes a lot of sense. The Lakers only filled out their roster a few days ago and there will be a lot of discussions about who will play where and when. Rob Pelinka and company have a roster with some versatile players, so Vogel will have plenty of options when the regular season rolls around.
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Having James start at point guard has positives to it, but he needs to be surrounded by a specific group of players to make it work. Green cannot be the sole positive defender on the perimeter, as James, at this stage of his career, isn’t the same defender he once was and Kuzma leaves something to be desired on that end of the court.
A traditional lineup with a center, such as DeMarcus Cousins or JaVale McGee, joining James, Green, Kuzma and Davis would leave the Lakers painfully thin defending opposing backcourts.
James is always a facilitator when on the court, so having the point guard moniker isn’t anything new to him. But, it would be up to Vogel to surround him with players that cater to his skills and won’t leave them exposed on either end of the court.
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We have a long way to go before lineups will be announced, but it will be interesting to see what the Lakers do. With solid depth throughout the roster, we could see a number of different lineup combinations used.