LeBron James’ criticism of NBA Play-In game comes across as hypocritical

Last season, LeBron James was a driving force for the Los Angeles Lakers being a dominant team that won the NBA Championship over the Miami Heat. A resounding victory headlined by James and teammate Anthony Davis’ efforts enabled the Lakers to enjoy a victory that would have the late Kobe Bryant smiling down upon his former team.

A year later, the paradise is looking gloomier thanks in large part to the struggles of the Lakers this season. With James being out for much of the last month and a half thanks to an ankle injury, Los Angeles has dived from the top of the Western Conference to being in danger of the play-in game that was first installed last season. James was rather less than pleased and offered his take on the matter.

Sure, James can believe what he wants, yet wasn’t it a year ago where he was fully on board with the idea of the play-in game? Now all of a sudden, it’s a problem? The situation could have been avoided if the Lakers continued to win games instead of taking defeat after defeat with James on the sidelines.

Also, why is Davis, as good as he is, not rising up and keeping the Lakers afloat? Sure, he had a great performance against the Denver Nuggets on Monday night and had the key shot block to seal the victory. However, like a bag of pretzels distributed on several flights, it’s merely a small sample size.

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Moreover, Andre Drummond, whom many believed was the acquisition that would help the Lakers keep their dreams of a repeat on steady waters, has not lived up to expectations recently and has largely been more of a liability at times as opposed to a blessing.

LeBron James has not looked good in the spotlight recently, and this only adds to the issue.

Don’t get it twisted; LeBron James is still one of the best players in the league and will go down as one of the greatest players in NBA History. But his recent appearances in the news have largely been for the wrong reason. James’s tweets towards a police officer after a video showed that the officer was doing a heroic act instead of committing a crime backfired heavily on the superstar, despite his intentions.

These latest comments come across as hypocritical and give fans of the NBA another reason to criticize James. Worse than that, the Lakers are in danger of potentially not only falling to the play-in tournament but there is a possibility, albeit a long one, of the Los Angeles Lakers not making the postseason a year after winning the title, a feat only accomplished twice in NBA history (1968 Celtics and 1999 Bulls). Sure, their recent victory over Denver alleviates the struggles, but for only a short time.

The Lakers are not in a good spirit and it’s a far cry from where they were just a season ago when confetti rained in Disney World on their shoulders. As for LeBron James, he hasn’t had the best of luck lately, and it’s affected his health and his team. Also, it’s fair to say he brought some of this upon himself.