LeBron James makes cryptic Instagram post amid Lakers' 0-4 start
All is not well with the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Lakers are off to an 0-4 start to the 2022-23 NBA season. It marks the worst start for a LeBron James team since the 2003-04 season, James' rookie year with the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Lakers are especially devoid of shooting, with an overall field goal percentage of just 41.6, second-worst in the NBA. Their 22.3 three-point percentage is the worst in the entire league.
Now, their most important player may be voicing his displeasure.
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LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are now 0-4 after losing to the Denver Nuggets last night.
James himself has weighed in with a curiously worded Instagram post.
On Thursday, LeBron posted a highlight of himself from the Lakers' 110-99 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Instagram. The post was captioned in part, "How long will you be taken for granted…"
Lakers hall-of-fame former point guard Magic Johnson also commented his disappointment with the Lakers' slow start – and their rough shooting – on Twitter Thursday.
As then-Lakers president of basketball operations in 2018, Johnson recruited James to the Lakers in free agency. The move eventually resulted in the franchise's 17th NBA championship, and James' fourth, in 2020. However, the Lakers have also missed the playoffs in two of James' four seasons in purple and gold.
One of those seasons came last year after the Lakers' ill-fated trade for Russell Westbrook. Despite evident friction between Westbrook and the Lakers during the 2021-22 season and into an offseason full of trade rumors, Westbrook remains a Laker for now. However, Stadium recently reported that Westbrook could soon be coming off the bench despite his stated distaste for doing so.
Johnson said Westbrook should "take accountability" for his on-court struggles during a recent appearance on "Club Shay Shay."
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Magic Johnson gives Russell Westbrook advice and remembers when he was boo’d and called "Tragic Magic." "First off, take accountability."
In the meantime, the Lakers will keep looking for solutions as first-year head coach Darvin Ham tries to get his team on the right track – and keep James, his 19-year veteran superstar, happy.