Even after an NBA championship in 2020, LeBron James struggled to fully win over the demanding fans in Los Angeles during his eight seasons with the Lakers. Now, as Luka Dončić steps into the spotlight, Austin Reaves has dropped a truth bomb about why things played out the way they did for King James before he left for the 76ers in free agency in July.
The Kobe Shadow Over King James
According to Reaves, speaking to the California Post, the whole “Bron situation” was “a little different.” He points right to the heart of it: LeBron and Kobe Bryant were locked in a multi-year battle for the title of the NBA’s best player. That’s heavy, right? Reaves straight up said Lakers fans at the time “probably hated LeBron” because of it. James had led the franchise to its first championship in 10 years in 2020, but the fan embrace was never quite the same.
Why Dončić Gets a Different Welcome
It wasn’t that fans didn’t “accept him when he was here,” Reaves clarified, but that underlying “Kobe is better” mentality always lingered. Imagine trying to follow a legend like that, especially when you were considered his contemporary rival. But for Luka Dončić? It’s a totally different ballgame. Dončić arrived “kind of after Kobe,” meaning he doesn’t carry that baggage. Reaves sees no “reason not to embrace him like a Kobe or someone else who was a Laker legend.” It makes you wonder what could have been for James if the timing was just different.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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