Lakers: Analyst Says LeBron James Is One of the Best Centers In The League

Shannon Sharpe has some things to say on his show "Undisputed." Must be a day that ends in Bayless. I mean, in "Y." Sharpe has always had more fondness for LeBron James than Skip Bayless does (a low bar, I know), and this time he compared James to Magic Johnson.

.@ShannonSharpe on how impressive LeBron has been playing center:

"There's been 2 guys that's been able to do what he's done: Magic Johnson in the NBA Finals and Bron. If you make me say it, I'll say LeBron is the 3rd-best center in the NBA right now." pic.twitter.com/6xnViGul8j
— The Facility (@TheFacilityFS1) January 12, 2022

Big Man Claims

There is some statistical information to back Sharpe's claims. On December 28th, the Lakers played the Rockets and James played the center position. James put up a triple-double in that game with 32 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds. Ridiculous. Since his move to the five spot, James has averaged 33.1 ppg, 6.8 apg, and 8.8 RPG.

Russell Westbrook's shooting woes have continued, but since James started playing the center position, Westbrook's turnovers have gone down. Coach Vogel has taken note of this, as well.

" You're going to see Anthony playing a lot at the five. When Anthony's out, we have the lineups we've been playing a lot right now with LeBron at point-center. It is the direction that I think we're going to land with this group towards the second half of the season."

What's the Magic Connection?

Sharpe's comparison to Magic Johnson is of course about one of the most infamous NBA finals games of all time. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was injured for game 6 of the 1980 NBA finals and Johnson took over the center position for him. One has to keep in mind this was back in the NBA era where the big men really played like traditional centers. They filled the paint, stayed near the paint, and lived by the paint. Johnson scored 42 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists to beat the Philadelphia 76ers and bring a championship to LA. Johnson did this during his rookie season. Talk about a Laker legend.

King James

Remember at the beginning of the season when the Lakers were looking to lessen James' load? Good times. Unfortunately, the Lakers are badly going to need James to continue to pour it in at the center position.