Los Angeles Lakers’ star player, LeBron James, engaged in a candid discussion with former NBA sharpshooter JJ Redick this week, shedding light on the team’s early-season struggles during the 2023-24 NBA campaign.
In an episode of their Mind the Game Pod, James and Redick delved into the Lakers’ offensive challenges, particularly their struggles with shooting accuracy:
“We couldn’t shoot,” James remarked. “We always said the law of averages is going to even itself out. The first month-and-a-half, two months, we couldn’t hit the side of a f–king cow’s ass from three points. We couldn’t.”
LeBron on the Lakers’ slow starts on offense:
“We couldn’t hit the side of a f***ing cows a** from three point land.”
(via @mindthegamepod) pic.twitter.com/ZEQKBcUJZO
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) May 1, 2024
The Lakers encountered significant inconsistency more than halfway through the season, finding themselves with a lackluster 24-25 record by January 30. Offensive deficiencies played a pivotal role, but they managed to reverse their fortunes in the latter half of the season, finishing with a commendable 23-10 record.
This remarkable turnaround propelled the Lakers from a middling offensive team to one of the league’s elite offensive units. By season’s end, they ranked eighth in the NBA in three-point shooting (37.7 percent), second in field goal percentage (49.9 percent), sixth in scoring (118.0 points per game), and second in free throws made per game (18.9).
James played a pivotal role in this improvement, achieving a career-best three-point shooting percentage of 41.0. However, the team’s success was not solely attributed to James, with notable contributions from D’Angelo Russell (41.5 percent), Rui Hachimura (42.2 percent), and Anthony Davis (55.6 percent).
Despite their late-season resurgence, the Lakers’ playoff journey began in the play-in tournament, where they secured a spot but faced a formidable first-round opponent in the defending NBA champions, the Denver Nuggets.
Although the Lakers put up a valiant effort, the Nuggets emerged victorious in five games, signaling an early postseason exit for James and his teammates.
