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Los Angeles Lakers: Three bold predictions for LeBron James in 2019

By Jason Reed

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 05: LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers waits to walk out to the court for a game between the Chicago Bulls and the Lakers during the 2019 NBA Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 5, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 05: LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers waits to walk out to the court for a game between the Chicago Bulls and the Lakers during the 2019 NBA Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 5, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers
(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers /

1. LeBron legitimately plays second fiddle to Anthony Davis

One of the narratives that you hear getting tossed around about the Lakers’ new superstar duo is that LeBron James is going to be taking more of a secondary role, thus allowing Anthony Davis to take over as the team’s number one option.

After all, this was the reported pitch that the Lakers were giving Kawhi Leonard when trying to recruit him to LA. The idea being that Leonard did not have to play in LeBron’s shadow and it will be his team.

This does not mean that LeBron is going to be much less of an impact as he will still put together great numbers. However, in terms of the team’s number one scoring option and who they go to in crunch time, it is going to be Davis.

LeBron is entering the later stages of his career and he knows that. He may have carried the entire Cleveland Cavaliers team two seasons ago but if he wants to maximize his time remaining in the league, he had to get a teammate that is going to take on more of a workload than he is.

And that is exactly what is going to happen. Davis is going to be the best guy on the Lakers this year, in large part because LeBron is putting him in the positions to succeed. Davis will play more minutes and will be more of an MVP candidate than LeBron will be, which is just fine.

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