Greatest free agency signings in Los Angeles Lakers history: 2 LeBron James
James signed with the Lakers in 2018 for $154 million over 4 years. Once again, it was a move that changed the balance of power in the NBA. LeBron was 34 at the time but as we all know, James just keeps on going and going.
Up to that point, LeBron had won 3 rings with the Miami Heat and the Cleveland Cavaliers as well as many other NBA awards. The Lakers were trying to change the team for the better as they were going through tough times with their current team as they struggled. The Lakers had a lot of young talent such as Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, Brandon Ingram, and Kyle Kuzma.
They were going in the right direction but similar to the Lakers team the year before they signed Shaq, they needed a force to bring everything together and of course, who better than LeBron? Of course, things didn’t work out the first year when LeBron was a Laker. It took a little bit more to get the team to where they had to be but LeBron was the centerpiece for the team as Shaq was.
All the team had to do now was fill in what was missing. Immediately, LeBron brought his intense expertise and talent to the team. There was no doubt that he was looking better than ever in his first season as a Laker as he was averaging 27.4 points per game, 8.3 assists, and 8.5 rebounds. The results of this amazing transaction? The Lakers won a title last season. Once again, great move all around.