With four games remaining in the 2018-19 NBA season, LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are shifting their focus to the 2019 NBA Draft and free agency.
As James and the young core did not reach their goal of making the playoffs in Year 1, they can improve with an unexpected lottery pick and $38 million in cap space.
Before James even signed a four-year, $154 million deal, the Lakers envisioned two All-Star players to lead them back to championship contention.
While this responsibility will be on president of basketball operations Magic Johnson and general manager Rob Pelinka, James will help as much as he can, according to Howard Beck of Bleacher Report:
“I’ve never played fantasy basketball,” James says. “But I will be as active as I need to be for this franchise to get better. That’s why I came here. I came here to win. And obviously, we need to get better, as far as our personnel. We have an opportunity to get better. And there’s a lot of talent out there, and a lot of guys that can help our franchise. So I’ll be as active as I need to be for us to get better and go from there.”
Throughout Year 1, there have been multiple reports about All-Star players not wanting to play with James. However, the 34-year-old remains ‘very confident’ upcoming free agents will want to join him in Los Angeles.
While there is skepticism surrounding the Lakers right now, things can quickly change if they ultimately sign or trade for a second All-Star player. With two All-Star players and a young core, the Lakers would be able to compete in the Western Conference.
