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Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, December 22, 2020 – Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) exults after receiving his championship ring during an on court ceremony at Staples Center. (Robert Gauthier/ Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, December 22, 2020 – Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) exults after receiving his championship ring during an on court ceremony at Staples Center. (Robert Gauthier/ Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
LeBron James and the Lakers in the off-season have made some statement changes to their roster. While they did tried to revamp their old roster in 2020-21, they have resorted to signing experienced veterans yet again.
Bringing in former veterans and adding a superstar in Russell Westbrook, it is fair to say that the Lakers were busy. Not only that, their coaching staff has seen a fair bit of change. Although head coach Frank Vogel has stuck around, his coaching staff has seen some changes. Namely Jason Kidd who was the assistant coach left to join in as the head coach for Mavericks.
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Lakers’ new acquisition jokes about punishing LeBron James
To replace their outgoing assistant coaches the Lakers have added two experienced veteran coaches, David Fizdale and John Lucas III. While Fizdale is coming off of a head coaching job with the Knicks, Lucas III was an assistant with the Timberwolves. But unlike Fizdale, Lucas III did play in the NBA.
Playing with a host of teams Lucas was a decent option to add depth to the point guard position and had an eight year long career in the NBA. While he was at it, he had his run-ins with LeBron James. Arguably the most iconic moment of it all was when LeBron jumped up and posterized him. Lucas certainly remembers the same incident.
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After the Lakers’ announced him of becoming a new assistant coach, the 38-year-old recently took to his Instagram and even joked that he would punish LeBron in training. “Man it just hit me that I will be coaching ‘King James‘ the very man who jumped over me in a game. He going to have to do extra laps in practice for this.”
Lucas certainly can be a big help for the Lakers this season. Given that he was a developmental coach in the Minnesota Timberwolves, the 38-year-old can be a big help to some of the younger talents in the Purple and Gold squad.
While the older veterans have made all the headlines, their young players like Malik Monk, Talen Horton-Tucker and Kendrick Nunn have all high potential to become regular contributors to the Lakers. Can John Lucas III help the Lakers win another championship?
