Los Angeles Lakers: 3 Bold Predictions for LeBron James in 2018-19

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LeBron Will Content for DPOY

James’ defense dipped significantly last year. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t have the capacity to be elite on that end. Blame last season’s decrease on an increased responsibility on every other area of the floor.

The defensive eliteness of LeBron is evident by him making the All-Defensive team for 6 seasons. Just over 2 years ago he also remarked at his disappointment on not winning the game’s greatest defensive award. Via CBS Sports,

“I’ve been highly upset that I’ve never won Defensive Player of the Year. It was a goal of mine. It’s still a goal of mine, so we’ll see what happens with that the rest of my career.”

There’s no greater time than with the Lakers to add another notch to his ridiculous resume. He’s finished 2nd in the award twice in 2009 and 2013 and the team defense of Los Angeles should only help his cause. The 2017-18 Cavs was one of the worst defensive units in league history while his new squad was in the top half of the league on that end.

Team defense and individual engagement are going to be key for LeBron pushing himself back into the top stratosphere of the league’s best defenders. His new team gives him every chance to get back there and if he’s playing more time at the center it will give him even more chance to do so. Look for The King to play a more offensively gifted version of Draymond’s game next year.

If Kawhi Leonard is fit and firing, Draymond Green produces consistently in the regular season and Rudy Gobert continues his elite form then it’s going to be tough for James to win his first DPOY award. Never write off a player of LeBron’s ilk who continues to defy all expectations on a day-by-day basis.

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