What LeBron James’ injury return means for Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves

RC Nazemi

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What LeBron James’ injury return means for Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves image

This season, the Los Angeles Lakers have been without LeBron James for all 14 games they’ve played to this point. 

Surprisingly? The team has looked utterly fantastic. Luka Dončić has looked like an MVP candidate thus far and leads the league in points per game and is in the top five in assists. Austin Reaves has similarly looked great and, in games without Dončić, has more than looked the part, currently top-ten in both points and assists. 

With the stellar play of those two stars, paired with the great efforts from Lakers role players like Hachimura, Ayton, Smart, and LaRavia, it has forced a wild question to be asked. 

Is this Lakers team…better off without LeBron? 

James has officially shed his ‘out’ status that he’s carried for the entire season, and is set to make his debut either Tuesday or Sunday against the Utah Jazz. 

It’s objectively hilarious to believe any team in the league would be better off without the talents of the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, but just how will it affect the team and specifically Dončić and Reaves?

More: LeBron James' role with Lakers is painfully obvious, writer says

Does LeBron James take away from Dončić and Reaves?

Simply, in many ways, yes. Yes, he does. Dončić currently sits at third in the league in usage with 35.9% while Reaves also finds himself in the top-30, sitting at 28.9%.

They have both proven that they are at their best with the ball in their hands as the primary playmakers. This very system has led to the statistics shared earlier for both of them. 

Per StatMuse, over the course of his career, LeBron James has averaged a 31.4% usage rate.

There is simply no way that James’ return won’t negatively influence both of their statistics. Mathematically, it doesn’t seem possible. 

Now, just because the Lakers' two current stars may see a dip in their statistics, that by no means indicates that they won’t be better thanks to James’ return.

Does LeBron’s return make the Lakers title contenders?

While yes, Luka may soon be just top-five in the league in PPG, and Reaves may fall to top-20 in points and assists, most Lakers fans would sacrifice that for more wins any day of the week.

With LeBron James’ return, that should be exactly what they get.

LeBron James, for being the all-time leading scorer, is arguably the most superb passer the game has ever seen.  His threat of scoring opens up his teammates, and his vision and ability let him rack up ridiculous assists. 

Many of the few struggles the Lakers have seen this season are, truthfully, based on the lack of a player like LeBron James. When defenses are able to key in on one playmaker while one of Dončić or Reaves is resting, a good defense can shut down everything. 

Even with two playmakers, elite defensive teams like the ones we saw in OKC can take full advantage of the lack of elite playmaking. You throw one more of those players into the mix, and suddenly there’s not enough bodies to cover. 

Teams will now be forced to choose between keying in on LeBron James, Luka Dončić, or Austin Reaves. Lord help them because that is a decision I would not want to make. 

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