Lakers: Chris Broussard Criticizes Recent LeBron James Play, Despite Numbers

The Lakers needed almost every one of King James's 47 points Friday.

Fox Sports 1 panelist Chris Broussard recently spoke on "First Things First" regarding both how magnificent a season Los Angeles Lakers All-Star power forward LeBron James is having in the greater context of his advanced age (he's 38) and mileage (he's in his 20th season), and how that just isn't enough for this struggling 15-21 Lakers team because it is not quite his peak greatness.

"What LeBron is doing is by far the best 20th season we've ever seen. ... But he's no longer the No. 1 guy on a good team and he's not as good as his numbers are showing." — @Chris_Broussard pic.twitter.com/hXL1q2bfH0

— First Things First (@FTFonFS1) December 24, 2022

"What LeBron is doing is by far the best 20th season we've ever seen, " Broussard raved. "No one has come close to doing what LeBron is doing at this age or stage of his career. And so anything he does good is gravy. It's icing on a great career that's only been topped by one guy [Michael Jordan]."

"And so this is not a criticism of LeBron, but what last night [the Lakers' recent 134-120 loss to the Kings, during which James scored 31 points, dished out 11 dimes, and grabbed six rebounds] showed is that he no longer is obviously the No. 1 guy on a good team and he's not as good as his numbers are showing... You would look at those numbers -- and on efficient shooting overall -- and say, 'Man, LeBron is just as good as ever.' No, he's not. All right, this isn't close to what LeBron used to be. I don't begrudge him at all, but he's putting up big numbers in a league that is easy to score in, relatively speaking."

As far as those numbers go, James is averaging 28.5 points on .506/.309/.753 shooting splits, 8.1 rebounds, 6.6 assists, one steal and 0.6 blocks through his first 28 games.

"[Internationally bred MVP candidates] Jokic, Giannis and Luka have all said it's easy to score in the NBA -- it's easier to than it is in Europe! And that is why LeBron is able to put up these similar numbers to what he's always done, even though he's no longer as good."