Lakers Rumors: The Lakers need to do the right thing and sign J.R. Smith

J.R. Smith made a mistake. NBA players make them. Get over it!

At this point, the first thing (Second and possibly last!) thing people will attach to J.R. Smith and his legacy is the blunder in the 2018 finals when he was confused about the situation in the closing seconds of Game 1. So, the game went to overtime instead of the Cavs having a shot to win the game in regulation. Sorry J.R. that old stuff has to be brought up, but we are trying to make a point here.

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This is a huge stretch here, but a couple of questions needs to be asked here.

1. How come the guy that smoked the free throw is never mentioned? J.R. didn’t miss the free throw, George Hill did. 
2. Okay he dribbled the ball out. Did it cost the Cavaliers the game or 5 minutes of bonus basketball? Do you lose games being tied at the end of regulation?

Okay, the man screwed up here. Let’s all get over it. That was almost two seasons ago. Is this one incident the reason for not giving this guy a chance? Lake Show Life remembers another Los Angeles Lakers player that was in the same position making the same mistake. He learned from his mistakes and turned out to be a pretty good point guard.

Remember the 1984 Finals when numerous mistakes earned Magic Johnson the nickname “Tragic Johnson”? How about the list of mistakes he made in that series. Like Lake Show Life always says, film doesn’t lie. Feel free to watch.

• In Game 2, he allowed the clock to run out and the game went to overtime. Eventually Gerald Henderson stole the ball on a James Worthy pass and Boston won the game.
• In Game 4, Magic threw a bad pass and Robert Parish stole it to set up overtime. Then Magic missed two free throws to set up a game winning jumper from Larry Bird over…Magic Johnson! 
• In Game 7, with the Los Angeles Lakers down five with about 1:30 left, Magic Johnson gets stripped by Dennis Johnson. Soon after, he allows Robert Parish to block his shot not getting the team in their offensive set. Boston wins the series 4-3. 

Instead of harping on this one (Check that numerous!) mistake(s) that cost the team a championship, Magic Johnson actually did what most people should do when adversity hits. Learn from them and work hard to do better the next time. Well the Lakers won the title back in 1985 and they won the rubber match for the 80s decade. Who turned the series around? Oh yeah, Magic Johnson.

The point here is, NBA players make mistakes. Even the icons, if this one play is the defining reason to not sign J.R., you are misinformed.