Lebron James joined the Lakers on a 4 year $154 million deal yesterday, wrapping up a deal that most of us have known would come for months. While the Lakers get the best current single player in the game right now, that move, alone, will not do anything for their status for the 2018/19 season. Other targets of James, including Houston PG Chris Paul, and OKC forward Paul George, declined the lure of Los Angeles, and ended up returning to their respective teams with new deals in place. A trade with San Antonio for Kawhi Leonard has not materialized, and may not at any point in time before he becomes a free agent in this time next year.
San Antonio has absolutely no motivation to deal Leonard to Los Angeles, which would make the Lakers stronger long term, while making the Spurs weaker in the West short term. I say that in all relativity to what Leonard means to the Spurs, which is, as is, absolutely nothing, as he did not play any respectable amount of time in 2017/18, and does not want to be there.
As of this writing, the only pieces that the Lakers have been able to lure along with James have been JaVale McGee and Lance Stephenson. That is not going to move the needle anywhere with a Laker franchise that has been mired in losing for a longer period than anytime in my lifespan. Even if the Lakers can grab DeMarcus Cousins from New Orleans, which is no guarantee at this point, the Lakers are still marginably better than they were a year ago, and their roster is now more muddled with ill fitting pieces than ever, with the albatross of paying LeBron James $154 million to not go to the finals. The only internal deal made by the front office, as of this writing, was to resign Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, again, a move that does not move the Lakers any closer to beating not only Golden State, but does not make them any better than Houston, Oklahoma City, Utah, or New Orleans, especially if the Pelicans can talk Cousins into resigning there.
With the majority of the impact making free agents already signed, it looks as if LeBron cornered himself into a deal, while falsely believing that he can wave his conductors wand and talk anyone he likes into joining him in LA. He had conversations with Kevin Durant about getting him to opt out at Golden State to join him in LA, but why on Earth would he do that? You don't leave the mansion on the hill to reside in the neighborhood dumpster, which is exactly what the Lakers have been.
In closing, the Lakers largely took a big swing and picked up a base hit, when they needed a grand slam. Their focus on signing LeBron, while believing that he would lure a gold cart worth of talent with him, was a massive miscalculation, and it may have just cost them $154 million to merely be a lower seed in the playoffs, if they are fortunate.
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