Road to Revival: LeBron’s most underrated weakness is decimating the Lakers

LeBron James all but confirmed that the Los Angeles Lakers season was over Tuesday night as his Lakers fell to 3-7 in their last 10 games, and ninth in the Western Conference.

He didn’t say it with his words, but, instead, with his actions. He even gave the media the common professional athlete vernacular, assuring his belief that the team isn’t done just yet. 

“We still have games to play,” said LeBron after their loss to the Dallas Mavericks. “Until you stomp me out, cut my head off, bury me 12 feet under, then I got a chance. So that’s my confidence.”

Although LeBron says all the right things to the media, a significant weakness in his game has loomed over his team during the past week, one that signals his wavering belief in the Lakers: his body language. 

It’s almost entertaining how much LeBron can’t hide his disdain toward the situation he’s in, despite his involvement in getting himself there. It’s the smallest of details, ones that you’ll really only catch if you key in on LeBron throughout the game. 

Countless times in the Lakers’ recent matchup against the Mavericks, LeBron would drop his shoulders after a missed shot by a teammate, almost as if to sigh in frustration, before jogging down the floor to get back on defense. 

After an opponent made a basket, LeBron would repeatedly throw his hands in the air and give his teammates the stink eye before inbounding the ball. 

This isn’t new with LeBron. His body language has always been demonstratively negative, going back to his days in Cleveland and Miami. He knows it, too — he just can’t help himself. 

“My whole career — and it’s going to end like this — they are going to say that my facial expressions and my body language, could have been better, was terrible “I apologize to all my teammates and coaching staffs,” said LeBron in a cameo on Richard Jefferson and Channing Frye’s “Road Trippin” podcast in 2020. “But they know who I am, and they know, at the end of the day, they can give me the same treatment.”

It might just be a built-in trait for these ultra-competitive, era-defining talents. There is nothing they hate more than losing, and when you’re at the top, it’s hard to not hold everyone to your standard. 

The greatest players are not always the greatest teammates. Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan would drag their teammates through the mud vocally. LeBron may not take the same direct approach, but his body language speaks for him.

It’s never been a huge issue for past teams because LeBron-led teams usually find ways to win games, and his body language becomes more imminent during losses. This Lakers team loses a lot though, even finding creative ways to throw games in the final minutes. 

The problem with LeBron justifying his poor body language by saying that his teammates can give him “the same treatment” is that he’s the leader of this team. He’s the guy that sets the tone because he’s the best player, and when your best player is pouting and sulking, it is demoralizing for teammates — a chemistry and morale killer. 

It seems that fate has started to settle in for LeBron. He realizes that this Lakers team just isn’t that good, ingrained with problems even he can’t fix. 

And, I get it. He is 37 years old, still held to GOAT-level standards, averaging the third most points and fourth most minutes in the league.

His running mate, Anthony “Day-to-Davis,” seems to have a lower body made of glass. Russell Westbrook can’t throw a rock into the ocean, and the coaching staff has shown a clear inability to put their players in a position to succeed.

Not to mention, LeBron isn’t healthy, dealing with a knee injury that kept him out of five straight games in February. He can still go through the motions and get 25 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists on any given night, because that’s how good he is. 

But when that 25-5-5 statline is paired with 10 low-effort attempts to get back on defense and 15 glares at teammates after made-baskets, it’s not a recipe for success. 

LeBron is the leader, and if you’re going to take the praise, sometimes you have to take the blame too. Right now, LeBron is quitting on the Lakers.

Sahil Kurup is a sophomore writing a column about the Los Angeles Lakers season. His column “Road to Revival” runs every other Friday.