Brian Windhorst Suggesting LeBron James Makes Lakers’ Worse Sets Off Social Media – “Love The Drama”

LeBron James and his Los Angeles Lakers have been wildly inconsistent this season even though they are still in a playoff spot.

Brian Windhorst Suggesting LeBron James Makes Lakers’ Worse Sets Off Social Media – “Love The Drama”

LeBron James and Brian Windhorst (Image via FirstSportz)

In Short
  • Brian Windhorst criticized the Lakers' performance with LeBron James, Luka Doncic, and Austin Reaves on the court together.
  • Statistics showed the Lakers perform better when LeBron plays without the other two star guards.
  • Fans reacted strongly to Windhorst's comments, highlighting the ongoing debate about LeBron's impact on the team.

When LeBron James returned from the sciatica that kept him out for the entire offseason training camp and the first month of the 2025-26 season, there was hope that he would help the Lakers take the next step.

Fans and analysts, though, were not impressed when the 41-year-old was clearly struggling with endurance, and even suggested he was intentionally stat-padding at the expense of the team.

Once he got back his usual stamina, Austin Reaves was sidelined. At the same time, the King, alongside Luka Doncic, managed to put together an inconsistent run, but the Lakers managed to stay in a playoff spot.

Then, after the undrafted guard returned, he came off the bench, and the team managed to win five of their last seven games. However, in four of them, the Slovenian did not play due to injury.

Then, in the three games since the All-Star break, all three superstars have been playing together. After back-to-back losses, when most of the media world and fans were turning on Doncic, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst pointing to something else:

When Luka, LeBron, and Austin Reaves play together, they’re just not a good team… When Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic play together, the Lakers are an excellent team. When all 3 play, they’re not. It’s actually a 20-point difference.

Brian Windhorst said on First Take

The senior writer used statistics to suggest how LeBron James, on his own, with four other Lakers’ players, is a very good team. But when the four-time champion is paired with the other two star guards, the team becomes one of the worst offensive units.

Fans react to Brian Windhorst’s LeBron James take

Fans have become accustomed to some folks at ESPN taking shots at LeBron James, just like how Stephen A. Smith has been in the past couple of episodes.

But they did not expect Brian Windhorst, generally known as one of the Akron natives’ biggest supporters, to bring up statistics to prove that James is the problem.

Where some fans felt this was probably the analyst venting his disappointment after the latter trolled him on the Pat McAfee Show, others felt that Windhorst was following ESPN’s obvious protocol of sticking to viral topics concerning James. Check out examples of such reactions below.

In Brian Windhorst’s defense, he did clarify how having three players with similar skills has not worked out for the Los Angeles Lakers. He also pointed out how LeBron James, on his own, has led to better overall team performances. But the way he said it seems to have ticked off fans.

Another ESPN analyst prefers LeBron James to take the last shot over Luka Doncic

Much ado has been made about the way Luka Doncic’s on-court antics have started to impact the Lakers. But after their last game against the Orlando Magic, critics have been wondering why he choked on a potential game-winner.

Austin Reaves, Luka Doncic and LeBron James have similar skills
Austin Reaves, Luka Doncic and LeBron James have similar skills (Image via Bleacher Report/X)

There’s not many players in the NBA that close games better than LeBron James. … As great as Luka is, I want the ball in LeBron James’ hands… He’s a great closer, and he didn’t get a chance to close.

Marc J. Spears said on NBA Today

The &ndscape lead writer believes that when Doncic was struggling from the three-point line, head coach JJ Redick should have gone with the player who had an obvious size advantage over his defender.

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