“We still have two guys… myself and AD.” LeBron James was quite confident of the Los Angeles Lakers’ future when he said this. But now Davis is already gone to the Dallas Mavericks. Even more concerning fact for the franchise is rumors surrounding a possible LeBron James trade with teams like Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers being reported as ones to contest for him. If the worst possible scenario comes true, do the Lakers even have anything to look forward to? Well, former NBA star Jalen Rose certainly thinks so.

“Now that you have both of them [Bron and Luka], then you got some box office,” Rose said, highlighting Luka Doncic’s importance on the Lakers. Following this, he stated something that should be a major source of joy and relief for the Lakers nation. “Luka’s going to be your future,” Rose said.

However, with King James in LA, Rose does not see another championship till his retirement. No denying that Doncic is a great addition, but even the arguable GOAT, Michael Jordan could not win championships without the right teammates to back his talent up. Jalen Rose fears this could now be the case with LeBron if he sticks with the Lakers.

“For the Lakers, it’s not about winning the championship this year. For the Lakers, it’s about being relevant. I don’t think they win another championship with LeBron,” Rose said on NBA TV. Not that Rose is accepting the rumors of LeBron James’ trade from the Lakers.

Shams Charania anyway told NBA Today that the Lakers have no plans of trading King James. So it’s safe to assume Rose’s opinion referred to James still being with the Lakers and not winning. JR, however, isn’t completely dismissing the excitement of having Bron and Luka on the same team. Where do the problems lie then, you ask?

It boils down to one key issue—both LeBron James and Luka Doncic are ball-dominant players. They’re at their best when the offense runs through them. But there’s only one ball on the court. How do you balance that without one of them taking a backseat?

Interestingly, this wasn’t Rose’s first time casting doubt on King James’ championship chances with the Lakers. Back in 2022, he made a similar prediction, claiming Bron wouldn’t win another ring in purple and gold. But Rose did offer a solution back then—Kyrie Irving.

“If LeBron is gonna win another championship, a player besides those guys is gonna make it happen. Kyrie Irving. You’re taking Kyrie Irving to go together with AD and LeBron, that makes them a clear big 3 and that makes them a contending team immediately,” he had said.

Remember when the Lakers were rumored to be all-in on acquiring Kyrie from the Brooklyn Nets ahead of the 2022–23 season? They even put both their remaining first-round picks on the table. But according to The Athletic’s Jovan Buha, the Lakers were only willing to offer Kyrie a two-year deal, while he wanted four years. That gap was enough to kill the deal, and as fate would have it, Kyrie ended up in Dallas, becoming the perfect running mate for Luka Doncic.

Fast forward to now—the Lakers didn’t just ignore Rose’s advice; they went in the complete opposite direction. Instead of forming a Big Three with Kyrie, LeBron, and Anthony Davis, they traded Davis to bring in Luka. It might be a good picture in the long run, but how are Bron’s championship chances looking?

What has LeBron James’ take been on winning another championship with the Lakers?

There is no reason that LeBron James would not be confident in winning another title with the Los Angeles Lakers before his retirement from the NBA. “Of course,” James told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin when asked that very question.

“Cause we’ve done it before,” James added, referencing the Lakers’ 2020 championship run inside the NBA bubble. But here’s the problem: since then, the Lakers haven’t been able to recapture that success. And the very factor that fueled LeBron’s belief in another title is no longer with the team.

James emphasized that having himself and Davis together always made the Lakers a contender. “We still have two guys who commit every single day, myself and AD. We commit to excellence,” he had said as per a Bleacher Report article.

But now, with Davis heading to the Mavericks, LeBron James’ claim of winning another championship feels a little shakier. LA has anyway struggled with chemistry for years now, constantly adjusting their roster, and expecting new players to click instantly. And with Luka Doncic now entering the mix, that adjustment period is far from over.