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Stephen A. Smith: The Lakers should strongly consider trading LeBron James

HoopsHype
·7 min read
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Talking NBA: “Lakers should strongly consider trading LeBron James” — Stephen A. Smith (First Take)
Source: Twitter @_Talkin_NBA

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Ohm Youngmisuk @NotoriousOHM
With one ‘good eye,’ Ja took down the Warriors, evened the series and did something only LeBron and Kobe have done before turning 23 espn.com/nba/story/_/id… – 11:21 AM

Justin Kubatko @jkubatko
Ja Morant has recorded at least eight rebounds/assists in each of his last seven games:
✅ 9/10
✅ 10/10
✅ 8/15
✅ 13/9
✅ 8/11
✅ 9/10
✅ 8/8
That ties Magic Johnson (1982) and LeBron James (2020) for the longest such streak in a single postseason in NBA history. pic.twitter.com/EbtUmv2k4t – 9:11 AM

Justin Kubatko @jkubatko
Ja Morant last night:
✅ 47 PTS
✅ 8 REB
✅ 8 AST
✅ 3 STL
It’s the second time Morant has scored at least 45 points in a playoff game.
He’s the third player in NBA history to record multiple such games before his 23rd birthday, joining Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. pic.twitter.com/E8pFImGElr – 9:01 AM

Ohm Youngmisuk @NotoriousOHM
Ja Morant is averaging 40.5 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 9.0 APG through the first 2 games of this series. Only LeBron James has averaged 40-8-8 through the first 2 games of any playoff series. LeBron did it vs Warriors in 2018 and 2015 Finals per @ESPNStatsInfo – 1:15 AM

Ohm Youngmisuk @NotoriousOHM
Ja Morant is the 3rd player over last 25 postseasons to score his team’s final 15 or more points of a playoff game.
Most Consecutive Points to End Playoff Game Last 25 Seasons
5/31/2007 LeBron James, CLE25
6/1/2021Damian Lillard, POR17
5/3/2022Ja Morant, MEM 15 – 1:12 AM

Drew Hill @DrewHill_DM
Per TNT, there are only 3 players under 23 years old to score 45+ points in a playoff game.
Kobe Bryant – 2
LeBron James – 2
Ja Morant – 2 – 12:39 AM

Micah Adams @MicahAdams13
LeBron James is the only player to score more points than Ja Morant in a playoff game against Curry’s Warriors .
LeBron dropped 51 in Game 1 of the 2018 Finals… in a loss.
Which means Ja just authored the best performance in a win against one of the NBA’s iconic groups. – 12:37 AM

Law Murray @LawMurrayTheNU
45+ points, 8+ rebounds, 8+ assists, 3+ steals, NBA postseason history:
– Michael Jordan 1992 vs Heat
– Russell Westbrook 2017 at Houston
– LeBron James 2018 vs Celtics
– Kevin Durant 2021 vs Bucks
– Ja Morant tonight vs Warriors pic.twitter.com/RJSHe8wFDd – 12:20 AM

Damichael Cole @DamichaelC
A true superstar performance. Ja Morant joined the likes of Kobe Bryant and LeBron James with his latest 47-point special. The series is now tied 1-1.
commercialappeal.com/story/sports/n… – 12:19 AM

StatMuse @statmuse
Most playoff games with 45+ points before turning 23:
2 — LeBron James
2 — Kobe Bryant
2 — Ja Morant pic.twitter.com/37hmWw7BHl – 12:18 AM

Wes Goldberg @wcgoldberg
That was special by Ja Morant. Just pried that game away from the Curry-Green-Thompson Warriors by getting to the rim over and over in a way I’ve only ever seen LeBron do. – 12:17 AM

Scott Agness @ScottAgness
Just a spectacular showing by Ja Morant.
Add him to the short list of NBA players worth the price of admission every time. LeBron. KD. Giannis. Steph. And a few others. – 12:14 AM

Ohm Youngmisuk @NotoriousOHM
Ja Morant joins LeBron James and Kobe Bryant as the only players with multiple 45-point games in the playoffs before turning 23 years old per @ESPNStatsInfo – 12:09 AM

LeBron James @KingJames
Like a said JA too special to be in a MIP conversation. Rising Super⭐️ – 12:09 AM

Marc J. Spears @MarcJSpears
Ja Morant joins LeBron James and Kobe Bryant as the only players with multiple 45-point games in the playoffs before turning 23 years old. @ESPNStatsInfo – 12:09 AM

Michael Grange @michaelgrange
LeBron called me a dweeb. I feel seen. – 11:01 PM

LeBron James @KingJames
JA so damn tough!!!! There’s no way Ja should even have been in MIP talks. This guy is a flat out ⭐️ and always have been!! Real basketball 🧠s know. Not the majority of dweebs who don’t even watch basketball on those voting ballots. – 10:49 PM

LeBron James @KingJames
J Poole got so much wiggle. Game! – 10:26 PM

LeBron James @KingJames
My GOODNESS Wiggs!!!!!! – 10:21 PM

Vincent Goodwill @VinceGoodwill
New for @YahooSports: It’s subtle, but it’s obvious. Tatum/Ja/Luka. The changing of the guard is here, and we haven’t missed LeBron in these playoffs: yhoo.it/38NCV0s – 8:39 PM

LeBron James @KingJames
JB cooking!! And that was nasty 🤮🤮🤮 – 7:18 PM

Ryan Blackburn @NBABlackburn
Only four players in NBA history have had a 4-year span w/ at least a +10 Box Plus-Minus:
Michael Jordan EIGHT times
LeBron James FIVE times
Giannis the last 4 years
Jokić the last 4 years
That feels statistically significant. – 6:13 PM

LeBron James @KingJames
MOOD!!!!!! 😁 @LFC 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 pic.twitter.com/egf6EsK4fE – 5:05 PM

LeBron James @KingJames
PARIS HERE WE COME!!!!!!!! @LFC 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 – 4:55 PM

Justin Kubatko @jkubatko
📅 On this day in 2021, the @Golden State Warriors Draymond Green had 10 points, 13 rebounds, and 15 assists in a 123-108 win over the Pelicans.
It was Green’s seventh 15-assist game of the season, breaking a tie with LeBron James for the most such games in a single season by a non-guard. pic.twitter.com/D9S4N7ijK0 – 1:01 PM

Nick DePaula @NickDePaula
Nike just released @FAMU_MBB’s jerseys at retail — the 1st HBCU jersey to feature @LeBron James‘ Crown logo:
https://t.co/XJXgzvMghz
@FAMU_1887 is the only “LeBron School” in college sports, as part of Nike’s 6-year partnership with @FAMUAthletics. pic.twitter.com/1snH127zCK – 12:39 PM

More on this storyline

What piqued Windhorst’s interest, however, is the prospect of LeBron teaming up with Mavs superstar Luka Doncic in the future: “I would say something else though,” Windhorst said. “As part of this answer, LeBron was having fun here to be clear. He wasn’t making a declarative statement. He talked about how much he admires Luka Doncic, and that is something that you should put in your back pocket. “Don’t ever judge LeBron a hundred percent on his words, judge him on his actions. The best way you can see how LeBron feels about people is who he drafts in his All-Star draft. He has drafted Luka Doncic all three years he’s been an All-Star. He tried to recruit Luka Doncic to his brand within Nike a few years ago. Luka picked the Jordan brand instead. He, I think, would also love to play with Luka.” -via Clutch Points / April 9, 2022

It’s not just all about hearsay from Windhorst here. After all, he is one of the most respected NBA insiders in the industry. The ESPN analyst brings up an excellent point about LeBron’s affinity towards Doncic. In his mind, this potential partnership has more legs than that of a LeBron-Curry duo. “In the fantasy world, to use Steph Curry’s words, if you want to enter the fantasy realm, that is something I think is more worthy of having a discussion about as opposed to Steph,” Windhorst said. “[This is going to be] down the line — I don’t think LeBron’s going anywhere in the short term.” -via Clutch Points / April 9, 2022

LeBron James has one year left on his contract with the Lakers but is eligible for an extension in August. Windhorst indicated the superstar will make his decision based on the team’s moves in the offseason but also noted James enjoys his current spot. “LeBron loves living in L.A., loves raising his kids there, loves sending them to Sierra Canyon,” Windhorst said (5:00). “I don’t think he wants to move.” -via Bleacher Report / March 29, 2022