1 week Ago By Brian T. Smith
LeBron James picked the wrong storied NBA franchise. The Boston Celtics are world beaters, pairing Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown to form a true team that just won a record 18th NBA championship. James went for the soft, warm lights in Los Angeles .
And wouldn't The King love to play for a team as strong, talented and promising as the Celtics right now. Boston is set up for years to come, thanks to keeping Tatum and Brown together in their primes. While the 2023-24 Finals just ended, the Celtics are already the betting favorites to go back-to-back and win it all next year.
Boston has a sharp front-office leader in Brad Stevens, and a no-nonsense head coach in Joe Mazzulla who loves the UFC . On the hardwood, Boston is deep, dynamic, plays real defense -- and plays in the right conference. While the Western Conference is still crowded at the top -- Oklahoma City and Denver had the same first-place record last year -- the Celtics won the East by a stunning 14 games.
Anthony Davis gives James a perfect complimentary piece. But after that, the Lakers' roster is a mess, as has been a head coaching search that saw college leader Dan Hurley coldly turn down Los Angeles to stay in Connecticut. Six years after leaving Cleveland (again) and picking the Lakers in free agency, James' latest Decision looks worse and worse.
Boston trumped its old 1980s rival by winning world title No. 18. Los Angeles couldn't even make it out of the first round of the playoffs in 2024, and simply making the.
