LeBron James Shares His All-Time Lakers Starting 5: "I’m Going Magic At 1, Jerry West At The 2, Kobe At The 3, Myself At The 4 And Shaq At The 5.”

The Los Angeles Lakers is probably the most storied franchise in all of basketball. The players that have played for the Lakers are some of the all-time greats of the sport period. Out of the 5 all-time top scorers in NBA history, 3 have been associated with the Lakers.

Considering the rich history to pick from, LeBron James was tasked with putting together his own squad of 5 all-time Lakers legends. He named a formidable squad with the likes of Magic Johnson, Jerry West, Kobe Bryant, and Shaquille O'Neal. Leaving off Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has raised the ire of people, but LBJ defended why he wanted to include Shaq on his list. 

“All-time starting five for the Lakers?” James said. “I’m going Magic [Johnson] at 1, Jerry West at the 2, Kobe [Bryant] at the 3, myself at the 4 and Shaq (Shaquille O’Neal) at the 5.”

“I mean Shaq is so dominant, man,” James said. “I mean, I love Kareem too. I can’t even front on that, but Shaq’s so dominant, we need a big cuz I’m playing the 4, so we need a big. A.D. already put himself in the Top 5? Well put A.D. in, take me out.” (h/t Lakers Daily) 

Did LeBron Disrespect Kareem By Not Including Him?

LeBron said that if he had to take himself off the list, he'd do so to include current teammate Anthony Davis as the power forward next to Shaq. The insistence on not including Kareem is odd, but everyone knows that Kareem hasn't had the highest of opinions of LeBron, though he has expressed regret for previous comments against LeBron.

The pair will definitely interact with each other this season, as LeBron is on the verge of becoming the all-time top scorer in the NBA, crossing Kareem who had set the record when he retired from the game. 

Whether someone would take Shaq or Kareem on an all-time team is a personal decision. For someone that didn't hesitate to look back at the past and add Jerry West and play Kobe Bryant as a small forward instead of a shooting guard, LeBron definitely could have added Kareem and Shaq both if he wanted to.