Veteran Ex-Thunder Guard Pleads With LeBron James for Lakers Roster Spot

lebron james

Getty LeBron James & Anthony Davis of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Expectations weren’t high for this Los Angeles Lakers team heading into and they certainly haven’t exceeded them through two games. The team is 0-2 and their 22.4% 3-point shooting through two games is the worst the NBA has ever seen to start a season on a minimum of 60 attempts. The Lakers have serious roster issues and there’s no obvious fix on the way.

If the team continues to lose, they may need to shake some things up. One free agent guard believes they can be of help to Los Angeles. Former Oklahoma City Thunder guard Deonte Burton reached out to LeBron James on social media and made his case to get a roster spot.

Burton is currently with the Maine Celtics of the NBA G League but could easily be acquired by the Lakers if they want him. He hasn’t played an NBA game since the 2019-2020 season but he’s been staying active in the G League. Unfortunately for him, it’s hard to imagine the Lakers bringing him on. They need shooting and he’s been a 22.5% 3-point shooter over his career. Any roster spots that open up going forward should be reserved for shooters as the Lakers aren’t going to win many games if they continue to be the worst shooting team in the NBA.


LeBron Talks Lakers’ Shooting Woes

It’s still early in the season and the Lakers have played two tough teams to start. They could get in the win column on Sunday against the Portland Trail Blazers. The Lakers’ shooting is a major concern but LeBron isn’t too stressed about it yet.

“I’m definitely not going to sit here and harp on what we can’t do every single game,” LeBron said after the loss to the Clippers, via ESPN. “That’s not a leader. What I know we can do? We can defend our a** off. We did that tonight, which gave us an opportunity to win and we just couldn’t make it happen. But, I’m OK with that.”

LeBron knows the Lakers shouldn’t be relying on shooting as they don’t have the players to be a great shooting team. However, he believes there are other things the team can do to still win games.

“If we’re reliant on [sufficient outside shooting] every single game, then we’re in trouble,” LeBron said. “So I’m not worried about that or thinking about that. It’s how hard we play, how aggressive we play, how determined we are to go out and compete every night. And we got to defend. When we defend, we’re going to give ourselves a good chance to win.”


Darvin Ham Addresses the Shooting Issues

The Lakers are really excited about what Darvin Ham can bring to the team as head coach but he’s off to a rough start. He knows the team has what it takes to make shots, they just have to get over the hump.

“I guess you could say that,” Ham said when asked if defenders were intentionally leaving Lakers shooters open to stack the paint. “But, I mean, we just have to take care of our business. That’s the way that we want to play. If they want to give us those shots, then we’ll accept it wholeheartedly. I mean, that’s the way we want to play. We want to play fast, physical and free.

“And, again, we see these guys making shots in practice and shootaround. They got to do it on the game floor. It’s as simple as that.”

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