Rich Paul didn’t push back when Max Kellerman suggested the Lakers might have been better off with Luka Doncic handling the ball a little less and LeBron James running point more. On the “ Game Over ” podcast, Kellerman argued that James may have known what to do, but was reluctant to step on toes after Doncic arrived in the blockbuster February 2025 trade that brought the young star from the Dallas Mavericks to Los Angeles.
“It’s not so easy for him [James]. When you say, ‘He’s the smartest guy, he’ll know what to do.’
He may know what to do, but he doesn’t want to step on toes. So I felt like that was the case with the Lakers… The team would have functioned better had Luka dribbled a little less and LeBron been playing point more… I felt like he needed to assert himself a little more.”
Paul’s response was blunt: “You’re not wrong,” he said. “You’re 50% right in what you said.
It’s a psychological thing, but it’s for a different reason. He [James] was raised right from a basketball perspective.
So when a coach asks you to do something, and play a certain way, he doesn’t know how to buck… That’s the only thing he knows how to do.”
He added, “He has such a profound respect for the game and everything that it entails,” he continued. “Obviously, I’m [James] is not the third option.
We know that. But if this is what I’ve been asked to do, then I’m going to do that, especially if it helps the team win.”
The Lakers’ new setup did put James in an unusual spot. Once Doncic arrived and Austin Reaves emerged as part of the team’s backcourt future, James was pushed into a more secondary offensive role than anyone would normally expect from a player of his stature. Still, he kept making the kind of sacrifices that help a team function, even if it meant giving up touches and control.
That didn’t stop him from producing. James finished with averages of 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 7.2 assists per game, and when the playoffs arrived, he delivered when it mattered.
Even so, the way the Lakers looked in the postseason, particularly in the first round, left room for another argument: that James might have been better served taking over the playmaking more often. Luke Kennard and Rui Hachimura also contributed strongly during that stretch, giving the Lakers more production across the roster.
There were also other factors at play. Doncic’s poor off-ball movement may have hurt the offense’s rhythm, and when James was the one steering things, the attack could bog down too. Taken together, that leaves a messy but revealing picture of how the Lakers’ offense actually worked around their stars.
In Other News...
Walker Kessler Arrives With Massive Pressure Lakers Fans Will Understand
The Lakers have officially finalized the acquisition of Walker Kessler, bringing in a center whose arrival immediately invites the usual Los Angeles scrutiny that comes with playing the position. In the teams press release, Rob Pelinka leaned into the idea that the backbone of the franchise has long been a dominant big man, praising Kesslers skill set and character while stressing how he fits with the players already in place.
Kessler also made the move feel personal on his end, posting a farewell message to the Jazz and reflecting on four seasons in Utah. For the Lakers, the transaction is done, but the real test starts now, because every new center in this market gets measured against a history that leaves very little room for ordinary expectations. [Read more 🡒]
LeBrons Lakers Ending Suddenly Looks More Unsettling Than Fans Realized
Derek Fishers reaction to the way some Lakers fans greeted LeBron James exit says a lot about how complicated the partnership has become. Fisher was struck by the celebration around a departure that, on paper, should have felt like the end of a star era, but in Los Angeles, LeBron never occupied the same emotional space as the franchises homegrown icons. He arrived with a rsum already built elsewhere, and that distinction still shapes how some fans and former players talk about his time with the team.
The larger backdrop is a relationship that never seemed to settle into easy trust, with the tensions around the Russell Westbrook trade and what followed only adding more friction. Even now, former Lakers are split on where LeBron belongs in the franchises story, which is part of why this ending feels more unsettled than a typical farewell. For a player of his stature, the debate is not just about what he did in purple and gold, but whether the Lakers ever fully made him one of their own. [Read more 🡒]