LeBron James slams NBA play-in tournament: Someone ‘needs to be fired’
NY Post
LeBron James is not happy with the creator of the NBA’s play-in tournament.
“Whoever came up with that s–t needs to be fired,” James said on Sunday, according to ESPN, following the Lakers 121-114 loss to the Raptors. His response came after being reminded of the reigning champion Lakers’ 71-day offseason after last season’s COVID-delayed NBA Finals in the Orlando bubble. At 36-28, the Lakers are in a three-way tie with the Mavericks and Blazers for the No. 5 seed. As the Southwest Division leaders, the Mavericks have the No. 5 seed and the Lakers sit at No. 6 with the tiebreaker over the Blazers. The top six teams in each conference automatically advance to the playoffs, while 7-10 are in the play-in tournament.It was only a three-second glimpse, but Matt Rempe, finally, showcased offensive strides. The ones he started talking about in the preseason — after a summer’s worth of work — and kept doubling down on, even when he fluctuated in and out of the Rangers lineup and shuttled back and forth to AHL Hartford.
In a different time, in a season to come, we may be inclined to wax poetic about the way this one played out. In a different time, in a season to come, the Nets will be seeking to stack wins and not losses, will be fighting for playoff seeding and not for a few extra ping-pong balls in the draft lottery this spring.
The NBA has an All-Star Game problem. Despite Adam Silver’s efforts to inject juice into the February showcase — including a format alteration to the 2025 game that is too confusing to attempt to understand before it’s inevitably changed again — there’s little interest in watching teams eschew defense for a series of layup line highlights. That also means the most entertaining part of the NBA All-Star Game is just like the Pro Bowl — debating over who should get a spot.