3. There is going to be even more motivation to win another NBA Championship
The Los Angeles Lakers reached the peak of the mountaintop this year and I am sure there are a lot of people out there in the basketball world that thinks this is it for the team. LeBron James got his fourth ring with his third team and now can coast into retirement, contending for a ring but not being so pressed to get one.
Championship fatigue is a thing and it is easy to see how there could be les motivation to win again once you are already the champions. Of course, they are going to be motivated, but less motivated, right?
Wrong. I think the Lakers are going to be far more motivated for ring number two.
As I said, the Lakers franchise is worried about dynasties, not singular championships and the only Lakers team to end their run with only one title was the Jerry West-led Lakers in 1972. Chances are that the Lakers will pull in another ring with LeBron James and Anthony Davis at the center.
Why be more motivated, though? First of all, the Lakers did not get to win it in front of their fans. Just that extra motivation of doing it in front of an audience and actually getting to parade it with the fans will give the Lakers a bit more juice in the gas tank.
And for LeBron, he still has so much more to gain. A fifth championship in 2021 puts six (which ties him with Michael Jordan) in a reasonable range and we all know that LeBron is trying to cement his place as the greatest of all-time. Then you have AD who is starting his own legacy as well as the entire team dynamic of proving that this title is not a “Mickey Mouse Championship”.
There is even more motivation to win and with the books essentially resetting after the 2020-21 season anyway, I think that added motivation will prompt Rob Pelinka to pull the trigger on a significant trade.