Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal has defended LeBron against the criticism he has copped from Lakers fans and even says King James deserves his own statue outside of Crypto.com Arena.
Shaq said that he doesn’t understand why some Lakers fans don’t see LeBron’s championship win in 2020 as a legit one and that having a statue of James as a Laker would be a fitting tribute.
“He did win a title with the Lakers and lot of people say that it doesn’t count,” O’Neal said on BallySports. “Well, if you don’t count his, you can’t count Mr. Tim Duncan’s bubble championship. If we’re gonna count Tim Duncan’s championship during the lockout year, we’ll have to count that.
“So, LeBron is one, as a Laker. He broke the [scoring] record as a Laker. Would I oppose him having a statue? I would not. If they wanna give him a statue, I’d be fine with that. Great player, great for the league. And he did what he was supposed to do as a Laker.”Laker fans are greedy, ‘Okay you got us this bubble championship, but when are you going to give us another?’ It’s always that.”
With LeBron considering not returning to the NBA next season, the possibility of him getting his own statue has been a hot topic.
Heat legend Dwayne Wade, who is very close with James, doesn’t think this will be the end for the King.
“I looked at that and thought, ‘I ain’t buying that.’ I know when the season is over and they’re asking him this question in this moment,” Wade said on the Club Shay Shay podcast. “But also I know, when he gets away, when he goes to Mexico or goes away to the south of France on his Yacht for the summer, he’s gonna look around and say, ‘Okay, the King coming back.’”
Lakers fans of course are hoping that LeBron will return in 2023-24, with the goal of winning another championship alongside Anthony Davis.