NBA Rumors: One would assume that LeBron James would have learned his lesson from teaming up with injured stars, but apparently he hasn’t
Spanish philosopher George Santayana once said, “those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it”.
That has been the story of LeBron’s free agent choices over the past 8 years, as he chooses time and time again to play with injury prone stars.
In 2010, LeBron signed with the Miami Heat to play with one of his best friends in Dwyane Wade, who had a history of injuries prior to him signing there. From 2003-2010, Wade missed 103 out of a possible 574 regular season games due to a dislocated left shoulder and multiple left knee surgeries.
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The injuries didn’t stop in the four seasons with LeBron James, as he missed 64 out of a possible 312 regular season games with left knee soreness. Wade’s health issues forced James to carry more of the scoring load for the Miami Heat. Over the first season and a half with the team, LeBron scored 10 points higher with Wade on the bench than when he was on the floor. He would win two championships with Wade, but in many ways was better without Wade than he was with him.
Things didn’t change when LeBron James decided to go back to his home state of Ohio and pair up with Kyrie Irving. Kyrie, like Wade, was injury prone. Prior to James joining him, Kyrie missed 49 out of a possible 230 regular season games in three years, most notably out with a concussion and a hairline fracture in his left index finger.
With James on board, he missed another 46 out of a possible 246 regular season games. Once again, it put the burden on LeBron to carry the offense. In a 24 game stretch, where Irving was out recovering from a fractured kneecap in the 2015-16 season, LeBron averaged 26.6 points per game with 6.5 assists and 7.7 rebounds. This was a slight increase in points and rebounds with only a minor dip in assists from his season average (25.3 points per game with 6.8 assists and 7.4 rebounds). The Cavaliers didn’t miss a step, winning 17 games during that 24 game stretch.
One would assume that LeBron’s history with injured stars would have him on the hunt for the opposite, but apparently, it is not the case. LeBron has been linked to four teams in free agency, three of them notably with injury prone stars, in Houston, Los Angeles Lakers and Philadelphia.
Houston’s Chris Paul? He’s missed 91 out of a possible 558 regular season games in the past 7 years, most recently in the playoffs with sore right hamstring.
Philadelphia’s Embiid? He’s been out for 94 of a possible 328 regular season games, including multiple surgeries on his right foot.
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Lakers? Although he’s not signed or been traded as of yet, talk of the town is that Kawhi, a player who has missed an average of one game for every four possible, will be joining the Lakers.
In all teams, LeBron would be once again putting the team on his shoulders, a task that a now 33 year old James may no longer be able to take on and a pattern that has taken him to where he is now, a player with a 3-6 record in the finals.
And what with LeBron can you always count on? For history to repeat itself.