LeBron James has one of the highest usage percentages in league history. There are only seven players who have posted a mark in that category that outdoes the Los Angeles Lakers superstar since the NBA started tracking the advanced stat. One of them is Luka Doncic.
In fact, it goes beyond Doncic just being ahead of James. Luka is the all-time leader. The superstar point guard has a career mark of 35.67 in usage percentage. That outdoes Michael Jordan, who previously led the category at 33.26. It also eclipses LeBron's 31.42 percent for his career.
So, how do the two on-ball offensive legends co-exist? Well, considering that James is 41 years old and more than happy to not force his brand of basketball anymore, pretty seamlessly. Rich Paul even thought LeBron had a natural role to play in an offense with Luka.
"The floor was Karl Malone ... if LeBron just decided to set screens, pop, set," Rich Paul said on an episode of Game Over with Max Kellerman and Rich Paul. "... If Deandre Ayton sets a screen, they're going to blitz Luka. ... If LeBron sets the screen, you pretty much have to switch it."
Doncic-James two-man game can thrive in the pick and roll for the Lakers
Paul explain when that two-man action in a pick and roll is happening with the traditional combo of a Doncic and Ayton, defenses will naturally try to force the latter into being the decision-maker. That easy out does not come when James is the one setting that screen.
Blitzing Doncic in that scenario allows James, one of the greatest playmakers and basketball minds in NBA history, into a natural advantage against a defense scrambling. It's a pick your poison type of situation.
Do you allow Doncic to feast on single coverage, or do you give up James dissecting a defense on the back foot?
Neither of those scenarios are easy for any opponent of the Lakers. These latest comments only add to Paul's recent attempts of drawing up what the offense looks like in Los Angeles with Doncic and James involved. It's not an out of touch suggestion.
LeBron talked ahead of the season about figuring out how to best fit with a team that does not require him to be on-ball as much. This can be one of the pathways.
James' recent stretch of offensive production has proven the all-time great has shaken the early-season rust and still has more left in the tank. Now it's time to maximize how that looks for the Lakers. Paul is trying to do right by his client by tossing these ideas out into the basketball sphere.