Surrounded by rows of reporters at the Los Angeles Lakers’ Media Day on Monday, LeBron James talked about his new team and answered questions about this season’s expectations.
The 15-year NBA veteran, preparing for his first season with the Lakers, said he expects nothing and that they have a long way to go to compete with the Golden State Warriors.
LeBron and his new squad have to wait less than a month before their first test begins.
LeBron Excited To Join Lakers
After spending his career between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat, LeBron is settling in with his third team, this time in Hollywood. He brings his streak of eight consecutive trips to the NBA Finals to a young and inexperienced team in a major media market.
One thing he hinted at is that basketball comes first before any bright lights off the court, though.
Basketball still comes before everything else for Bron
(via @NBATV)pic.twitter.com/0Osc59L6S8
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 24, 2018
With the Lakers comes a history of winning and some of the NBA’s all-time great players. LeBron spoke about his excitement getting to be a Laker.
He will don the same number 23 he’s worn in the past, just in a different set of colors.
Expectations For The Season
Going into his previous two stops, LeBron said he wanted to win as many titles as possible. He particularly sought to bring a title to Northeast Ohio when he returned to the Cavs in 2014. Now with the Lakers, he said he expects nothing and is focused more on what he can bring to the table.
LeBron joins a team that won 35 games last season and has young stars like Lonzo Ball and Brandon Ingram. They’ll have their work cut out for them in a loaded Western Conference.
In their own division alone are the Warriors, but he said they aren’t ready to compete with Golden State and that the Lakers will be “picking up from scratch” when training camp begins.
LeBron James isn't planning to start at center, but he’s open to playing there. https://t.co/koqgDWi8Xe pic.twitter.com/BiacWX6GPK
— Silver Screen and Roll (@LakersSBN) September 25, 2018
LeBron called himself a team-first player and said he’s excited about the level of pace the team plays with.