The art of subtlety has not always been the strong suit of LeBron James. His comments after the Los Angeles Lakers lost a disappointing 116-102 ball game to the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday were a great example of James being open with his frustrations.
The Clippers took it to the Lakers in the first matchup between these two teams at the Intuit Dome. The lead was as large as 26, at one point, for the little brother team in Los Angeles. The Clippers secured the statement win at their new home as a result.
James delivers a message postgame
After the game was over, the media encircled James, asking him if there were things that could be done to give the Lakers a larger margin of error. The 20-time All-Star was candid with his response.
"No, it's our team as constructed," James told reporters. "We don't have room for much error."
The NBA's all-time leader in points was then asked about the mental toll of the Lakers needing to play perfect basketball every night to give themselves an opportunity to win. This was the most eye-opening part of his response.
"We don't have a choice. That's the way our team is constructed. We have to. We have to play close to perfect basketball.LeBron James
We know the game is never perfect. It's never going to be a 48-minute perfect basketball game, but we can't combat it with multiple possessions in a row. If we turn the ball over, we have to do a better job with that. ... We can't have breakdowns. If our coaching staff has a game plan for us, we can't break down on our game plan."
James brought up excellent points in the latter half of his statement, but it was the first part that causes one's eyebrow to raise. The constant references to the roster construction hint at a player frustrated and asking his front office for change.
The Lakers already made one considerable move this season, trading for Dorian Finney-Smith. The two-way forward is off to a modest start in Los Angeles. Finney-Smith is averaging 6.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks per game in his first six games with the Lakers.
While Finney-Smith should prove to be a good addition as time goes on, it feels evident to everyone that the team needs more than what they are currently equipped with. At the very least, it sounds like James is bought in on that idea. Rob Pelinka and the management will have an opportunity to show LeBron and Anthony Davis how much they believe in the championship-winning duo between now and the NBA Trade Deadline on Feb. 6.