Getty LeBron James guarding Damian Lillard.
Though he hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down, LeBron James will have to retire from playing basketball eventually. However, that doesn’t mean he won’t be involved in basketball for a long time. The Los Angeles Lakers star has shown off some excellent team-building skills over the years.
He’s been in charge of putting an All-Star team each of the last four seasons. LeBron is 4-0 in those All-Star games. His success picking those teams has led some players to suggest that he’d be a good general manager. Portland Trail Blazers superstar Damian Lillard is among the players who believe that.
“Yeah, I think he’s got a future as a GM because he always gets it right,” Lillard said of LeBron, via Lakers Nation.
It remains to be seen if being a general manager is something that interests LeBron in the slightest. There have been former players that have gone from the court to the front office and have had success. Jerry West is probably the most famous example. After spending some time retired, LeBron could get the hankering to come back to basketball. A general manager job could be his calling down the road.
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Lillard Talks All-Star Weekend
It’s no secret that players weren’t overly excited to play in the All-Star game this year. LeBron even went on record saying he didn’t want to play. Fortunately, it looked like everything went on without an issue. Lillard praised how the NBA handled things.
“I think the actual basketball side of it was pretty smooth,” Lillard said. “Obviously, it wasn’t the typical All-Star Weekend, but it had to be done, and we got it done. We showed up and did what we needed to do. It was a good time.”
“Last year I didn’t get to play in the All-Star Game since they had the new format, and I was able to be out there for that last 24 for the fourth quarter, which is what I think everybody enjoyed the most last year in the game. I was just happy I could be a part of that, the ending of the game, and I could have an impact on the end of the game.”
This year’s All-Star Weekend looked a bit different for obvious reasons. It’ll be interesting to see if the NBA adopts any of the changes they made for future All-Star games.
LeBron Addresses Undefeated Record
As previously noted, LeBron is undefeated when he gets to pick his All-Star team. For whatever reason, he’s just got a knack for it.
“I always try to pick the right team, and I’ve been lucky enough for four years to pick the right team,” LeBron said. “Guys go out and compete and play to win. I’ve been on the winning side of all four.”
Wherever LeBron is, he’s typically winning. It’s just in his DNA. The top two All-Star vote-getters are the ones who get to pick their teams. This year might have been LeBron’s last chance to do it. If so, he ended things on a high note.
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