‘No one wants to say this s***’: NBA legend’s bombshell Lakers ‘conspiracy theory’
NBA legend Kevin Garnett has shared a bombshell concept about the way forward for the Los Angeles Lakers and their celebrity duo LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
With James injured, the Hall of Famer believes the Lakers hierarchy will use this era to establish “the Anthony Davis project” – and if he can’t show that he can lead the Lakers in James’ absence, Garnett claims the Lakers will commerce the celebrity at season’s finish.
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The Lakers shocked the basketball world after they introduced Davis to LA – for no small price on the commerce desk – however the partnership delivered in a championship within the Covid-19 ‘bubble’ in 2019-20.
Since then, nonetheless, Davis has repeatedly battled accidents, leaving James to hold the hopes of the franchise – and falling nicely in need of their title desires. They bombed out within the first spherical of the Western Conference finals in 2020-21, earlier than lacking the playoffs utterly final season because the Russell Westbrook experiment failed in depressing vogue.
The Lakers have since dumped Westbrook in a sequence of trades which have clearly strengthened and balanced their roster – however LeBron James’ latest damage may change every little thing.
James went down with a proper foot tendon challenge towards the Dallas Mavericks six days in the past, and is about to overlook at the least one other two weeks in keeping with the Lakers.
It has positioned their playoff hopes in jeopardy – they presently sit eleventh within the Western Conference with a 31-34 file, the identical because the Utah Jazz. They are half a recreation behind the Pelicans, and two video games behind the Mavericks and Clippers, with the Lakers having 17 common season video games to play (the final on April 10 AEDT).
It is the right alternative for eight-time NBA All-Star Davis to show he can carry the Lakers whereas James is absent – and maybe show he’s the long-term way forward for the franchise.
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Garnett was joyful to name it “a conspiracy theory,” however he stated on his KG Certified podcast: “Bron [James] hurts his foot, he’s down for two weeks. I’m anticipating that this is the time where I think the Lakers are sitting back to see the Anthony Davis project. And I think in these next two weeks, this is featured Anthony Davis to see what he can do in these two weeks to manoeuvre the Lakers.
“If he doesn’t make a pivotal shift, if this don’t make a pivotal move, or this don’t really move anything? Lord, I think they’re gonna come off the Anthony Davis project and move him this summer.”
He added: “These next two weeks, I’m watching Anthony Davis, seeing if he can actually lead the Lakers without Bron. Because if he can’t, dawg, it’s going to be like ‘Okay, what we doing here?’ It feel like that.’”
38-year-old James signed a two-year most contract extension in September with a participant choice for 2024-25. Davis, who turns 30 this week, signed a five-year, $190 million USD most contract after their 2020 championship success. Like James, he has a participant choice for the 2024-25 season.
The Lakers are determined to get probably the most out of their star double act – but when a second title collectively seems unattainable, it is smart that LA would look to maximise their return for Davis on the commerce desk.
But the much-talked-about relationship between Davis and James may show the essential issue within the Lakers’ decision-making. Davis infamously remained seated on the bench final month as James handed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time common season scoring file, with Davis later defending his response by saying he was pissed off that the Lakers have been shedding badly.
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But Garnett echoed the ideas of many pundits in latest weeks, saying it uncovered a strained relationship between the pair.
Garnett stated: “I saw how he (Davis) looked when the biggest moment in sports, your teammate, he accomplished something that no one, none of us could, right? And the energy. to me, wasn’t there. Their brotherhood energy wasn’t there. That love, that: ‘Hey, dawg, you did it.’ That looked kind of awkward.
“Lord, it kind of looked awkward. No one wants to say this s**t. No one wants to say this s**t out loud! He didn’t even stand up. Lord, lord, they ain’t rockin’! They ain’t rockin’ no more. And the writing’s on the wall … it don’t look like brotherly love.”
For now, Davis is stepping up. He’s averaging 33.8 factors during the last 4 video games because the Lakers reshape their offence round their eight-time All-Star. Most just lately, Davis scored 39 factors on 14/25 capturing with eight rebounds and 6 assists in a showstopping efficiency towards the Warriors to spoil Steph Curry’s return from damage. He performed 37 minutes in that recreation, his most time on the courtroom since early February and second-highest within the 2023 calendar 12 months.
With a comparatively pleasant schedule forward, Davis may – and maybe ought to – information the Lakers as excessive because the fifth or sixth seed within the West, even when James’ return is delayed.
But if Davis can not replicate the form of kind he confirmed in that 2020 championship season, a bombshell commerce may turn into a actuality – and never only a Garnett conspiracy.
