One could argue that the Los Angeles Lakers front office and specifically general manager Rob Pelinka have not given LeBron James and Anthony Davis ample opportunities to contend for championships in recent years.
Obviously the duo won a title in their first season together in 2020, but there have been plenty of struggles since then, headlined by the Russell Westbrook trade that went down during the 2021 offseason. That ended up setting L.A. back a season and a half, particularly with James wasting an All-NBA season in 2021-22 when the Lakers didn’t even make the playoffs.
Given the Lakers’ failure to construct a championship-contending team the last three seasons, there was speculation surrounding whether the 39-year-old would request a trade for the first time in his career.