LeBron James: Lakers not ‘constructed of great shooting’

National Basketball Association

10 mins ago

The NBA season is one day old, but the Los Angeles Lakers’ limitations are already apparent. Judging from LeBron James’ comments, their flaws might be fatal.

The Lakers were a disaster from the 3-point line in Tuesday’s night 123-109 loss to the defending-champion Golden State Warriors, making just 10-of-40 attempts (25%). Afterward, James said the poor shooting was a product of how the roster was built.

“I think we’re getting great looks, but it also could be teams giving us great looks,” James said. “To be completely honest, we’re not a team that’s constructed of great shooting. That’s just the truth of the matter. It’s not like we’re sitting here with a lot of lasers on our team. But that doesn’t deter us from still trying to get great shots, and when you get those opportunities, you take them. But we’re not sitting here with a bunch of 40-plus [percent] career 3-point shooting guys.”

James collected 31 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists, but he also committed five turnovers and hit just 3-of-10 from beyond the arc. L.A.’s other four starters combined for 2 of 14 on 3s.

None of it came as a surprise to Shannon Sharpe, who asserted the team is built for the wrong era.

“They’re built like a team that can contend in the 80s and 90s,” Sharpe said on Wednesday’s “Undisputed.” “You got two guys up front that can go get you 25-30 [points] on a nightly basis. You get Russ that chipped in and played particularly well last night as far as scoring the basketball. You got 78 points from your Big 3, but then you got nothing else from anyone else.

“So the way they’re constructed, if they’re playing in the 80s or the 90s, they’d be a hell of a ballclub. They could probably win it all. But in today’s game, where shooting is of the utmost importance, nah, they’re not going anywhere. If they don’t make some moves, they’re not going to contend in the West.”

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If Sharpe knows that, it’s safe to assume James does as well. Colin Cowherd made the case on Wednesday’s edition of “The Herd” that James’ comments were thinly veiled shots at Rob Pelinka & Co.

“LeBron sent a message last night,” Cowherd said. “They could have Buddy Hield. Did you notice that? That’s LeBron saying, “Make the Buddy Hield trade. Give me a laser. Give me one.'”

The situation is seemingly urgent, as James remains elite but is in Year 20 and about to turn 38. Those factors make the Lakers’ offseason moves that much more confounding. They signed Lonnie Walker, Thomas Bryant, Damian Jones, Juan Toscano-Anderson, Troy Brown and Dennis Schroder in free agency and traded for Patrick Beverley, an effective 3-point shooter but limited scorer. Moreover, they didn’t re-sign Malik Monk, who shot 39.1% from beyond the arc last season, and they didn’t trade Russell Westbrook.

Tuesday night’s lopsided loss only amplified calls for the Lakers to move the aging All-Star to Indiana for Hield (a career 39.8% shooter from 3) and big man Myles Turner (34.9%).