Famed Laker Byron Scott's Honest Critique Of Control Freak LeBron James: Just Coach The Team
Without any disrespect in his tone, Los Angeles Lakers legend Byron Scott put LeBron James in his place amid the Lakers' search for a new head coach, suggesting he skip all the secrecy and start running the team during games as he typically does.
LA dismissed two-year coach Darvin Ham, a guy who (more often than not) was overruled by James and, at times, humiliated by James' overruling.
The King didn't stand up for his coach, and Ham became the first Lakers coach to make the postseason and then get the boot.
Byron Scott, a bastion of the Showtime Lakers era, gave his thoughts on the ‘coach killer’ narrative hanging around LeBron.
LOS ANGELES - Byron Scott of the Los Angeles Lakers watches his team against the Houston Rockets at Staples Center on January 25, 2015. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
Featured on "Undisputed" Wednesday morning, Scott suggested that since LeBron gets the final word inside the organization and on the court, James should put his name forward to owner Jeanie Marie Buss and coach the Lakers next season — pulling the ol' Bill Russell, Celtics trick as a player-coach.
The commentary may appear fiery from Scott, but the ex-coach pulled back the curtain on a running facade in LA — one that's kept the Lakers out of serious contention for a title since 2020's Bubble championship. And it's LeBron's full autonomy to call the shots.
LOS ANGELES - LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers. Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
"I got nothing but love and respect for LeBron. I love him. I think he's one of the greatest players that ever played this game, but it's obvious to me, at least, that he's making a lot of decisions in this organization from a coaching standpoint to a player standpoint," Scott said. "As far as I'm concerned, the only person that he's going to really trust is himself, and since you're making a lot of these decisions anyway, why not put him in that seat?"
The worst-kept secret in LA is LeBron James' control of the Lakers front office and ownership, which in its worst days leads to bogus trades or overpaying for talent due to LeBron's spontaneous need to shake up his roster.
Worse than his influence on roster decisions, LeBron's influence on getting coaches canned has been a trending topic within discussions of his ‘all-time legacy’ (a topic that keeps the lights running over in ESPN's basketball division).
LeBron James approaches his 22nd season in the NBA, hoping to play a game alongside his son, Bronny James.
Bronny's road to the NBA Draft, tied to LeBron's influence on both the Lakers and the league, raised eyebrows over the apparent favor on display.
Playing a lackluster first season of college ball at USC, James followed up his rocky debut by declaring for the NBA Draft amid the narrative that LeBron will join any team that drafts Bronny.
The clear favorite to draft the 6-foot-4 shooting guard — a player who checks zero boxes for the deficiencies in LeBron's current roster, following a postseason defeat to the Nuggets — are the Los Angeles Lakers.
HOUSTON - Bronny James of the West team talks to Lebron James of the Los Angeles Lakers after the 2023 McDonald's High School Boys All-American Game at Toyota Center on March 28, 2023. (Photo by Alex Bierens de Haan/Getty Images)
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