Is LeBron James Getting a Statue in LA? Ex-Lakers Star Makes Honest Confession

Pat Riley got his own statue unveiled outside the Crypto.com Arena in February. That was a reminder of just how exclusive that club actually is in Los Angeles. Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant, Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, Chick Hearn. Every name there has one thing in common: multiple championships and decades of loyalty to a single franchise. Now that LeBron James has left for Philadelphia after eight seasons, the debate over whether he belongs among them has an answer, and it isn't a simple yes.

Matt Barnes gave his honest read on #WordsWithScoop. And it wasn't the unconditional endorsement some of James' other former teammates have offered.

"If he gets it, great," Barnes said. "If he doesn't, I understand."

Mychal Thompson said that James deserves "three statues." One each in Cleveland, Miami, and LA, calling him "arguably the greatest player to ever play, along with Kareem and Michael Jordan."

Kareem won five championships, three MVPs, and one Finals MVP in a Lakers uniform. Magic Johnson won five titles, three MVPs, and three Finals MVPs. Kobe Bryant won five championships, one MVP, and two Finals MVPs.

Even Shaquille O'Neal delivered three straight championships. James, across eight seasons in Los Angeles, won exactly one title, in the bubble in 2020, along with the league's first-ever in-season tournament.

He also broke the NBA's all-time scoring record in a Lakers jersey and passed Kareem for the franchise's combined regular-season and playoff wins record in March.

Byron Scott said, "No statue," he told SI. "One championship in six, seven years — I don't know how many years he's been in LA — but I think if he gets another one, then he has a chance." That second championship never arrived before James left this summer, which effectively closed the door on the exact scenario Scott laid out.

Kendrick Perkins took the opposite position. He callws it "disrespectful" to withhold a statue from a player who broke scoring records and playoff win totals in the uniform, telling Channing Frye on Road Trippin: "That man deserves a f****** statue in front of Crypto Arena!"

Frye's responded in a different direction entirely: "I'm not saying he shouldn't deserve one, I'm saying he's not going to get one. Lakers fans don't accept him."

James is now with the 76ers. Meaning that any future statue debate will be resolved purely on the eight seasons already completed, with no more championship opportunities left to tip the scale in Los Angeles.