“Lakers and Bron serving two different masters!” LeBron James not interested in winning championships, says Emmanuel Acho

James reportedly offered to take a $16 million pay cut if the Lakers could bring in an impact player.

“Lakers and Bron serving two different masters!” LeBron James not interested in winning championships, says Emmanuel Acho

LeBron James excited to work with Bronny and JJ Redick

Emmanuel Acho, a former NFL player, has made a controversial statement about LeBron James’ priorities. Acho believes that James’ primary objective is no longer winning championships, but rather playing with his son, Bronny James. 

Acho points to the Lakers’ hiring of JJ Redick as head coach and the drafting of Bronny James as evidence of this. He claims to be a LeBron James fan and thinks the offseason was a success for James, but his take has sparked debate. 

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If his primary objective was to win the championship, I don't know that Bronny James would be on the team... I think the Lakers and LeBron James have two different goals. LeBron's primary goal was to play with his son… Now if you’re a Lakers fan you should have your concerns because the Lakers and LeBron are serving two completely different masters.
Emmanuel Acho said on Fox’s Speak

While James may or may not have played a role in the Lakers’ decisions, it’s not clear that his priority isn’t still winning championships. In fact, James reportedly offered to take a $16 million pay cut if the Lakers could bring in an impact player, suggesting that he is still committed to competing at the highest level.

James’ impressive statistics from the 2023-24 season – 25.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 8.3 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game – also suggest that he is still driven to perform at a high level. Acho’s comments may be an overinterpretation of James’ desire to play with his son, and may not accurately reflect James’ true priorities.

LeBron James and Lakers have different priorities according to NBA insider 

NBA insiders Brian Windhorst agree that LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers have different priorities. While Acho believes James’ priority is playing with his son, Bronny, Windhorst thinks the Lakers are focused on developing young players and sticking to their draft picks.

Here's the thing, not six months ago, not 16 days ago, like last week when they introduced JJ Redick as head coach, Rob Pelinka sat up there in front of everybody and said we are going to focus on development of young players. We're going to focus on our draft picks, we're not going to trade our draft picks, that's what he said.
Brian Windhorst said on NBA Today
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Windhorst points to the team’s introduction of JJ Redick as head coach and their signing of Max Christie to a $32 million deal as evidence of this. He also notes that the Lakers’ plan doesn’t seem to align with James’ desire to win championships, which may require trading away draft picks and young players. 

LeBron James has signed a two-year, $104 million contract extension with the Lakers, but the team has failed to land their top targets in free agency, including DeMar DeRozan and Klay Thompson. As the season approaches, the team’s ability to balance their development plan with James’ championship aspirations will be put to the test.

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