With the drama surrounding Kawhi Leonard in San Antonio, the Los Angeles Lakers don’t appear to have a ready-made superstar acquisition in the works. When LeBron James arrived in his new home, the widespread assumption was that he would have a running mate in the (very) near future but, according to Zach Lowe of ESPN, the best player in the world “is not pressuring” the Lakers to drop the hammer immediately to pick up a legitimate No. 2 option.
But LeBron is a Laker, and he is not pressuring L.A. to acquire a second star now, per sources familiar with his thinking. His decision to come alone for three guaranteed seasons speaks for itself. He knows Ingram has at least borderline All-Star potential, and that the 2019 free-agency class is loaded beyond Leonard. He has faith in the combined powers of his supernova talent and the Lakers brand.
His patience will have limits. But reading between the lines, the Lakers probably have the next calendar year before LeBron applies urgent pressure.
Because James agreed to a long-term deal, the hot seat isn’t boiling on L.A.’s management when it comes to adding another top-tier option. Obviously, it would be better for the Lakers if they were able to acquire Leonard (or another superstar) at a reasonable cost but, with all of the one-year signings the team has made, it is clear that keeping the salary cap clean for next summer is a significant priority, which makes some sense because the list of available players next summer is incredible.
Though it may not be likely, Lowe’s reference to Ingram as someone with star upside is real and the same could be said for Lonzo Ball and Kyle Kuzma, albeit under different circumstances. It does seem quite likely that James wouldn’t be thrilled if the Lakers didn’t add a second star at some point in his tenure but the realization that there aren’t many options may be sinking in and James can make Los Angeles a playoff team in year one all on his own.
No one else in the league can absolutely claim that in the Western Conference but, as the NBA world realizes, LeBron is in a category of his own.
