When Magic Johnson took over as team president of the Los Angeles Lakers in 2017, he made it clear that he wants the organization to start winning championships again and by signing LeBron James, he took a big step in that direction.
However, he has also stressed that he doesn’t want to make the same mistake the Cleveland Cavaliers did and run James into the ground. Apparently, he’s not the only person plugged into the organization that wants to avoid doing that.
During a Q&A at the Lakers’ annual “All-Access” event at Staples Center on Monday, Kobe Bryant said that the Lakers can’t solely rely on James to get them to the promised land (via Dave McMenamin of ESPN):
Bryant said James’ approach to his maiden voyage with the Lakers is not conducive to long-term success, but that it was needed at this stage in the team’s development.