The Los Angeles Lakers traded away Kyle Kuzma in the 2021 off-season after four seasons with the purple and gold. They expected him to be a solid third option behind LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but his inconsistent displays led to the trade. Despite leaving the Lakers, Kuzma still has a lot of respect for his former teammates, especially LeBron James.
Tonight, he scored the game-winning shot for the Wizards against Bron’s former team, Cavaliers. He continued his great start to the season, scoring 22 points tonight, including a blistering 6-9 from three. With Bradley Beal and Spencer Dinwiddie struggling, Kuzma stepped up. His heroics, especially in the fourth quarter, helped the Wizards to get their eighth win of the season.
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During the post game interview, Kuzma talked about how the Cavs hecklers motivated him to hit the game-winner. He said, “There were some hecklers during the game talking to me, so I had to. It was their fault, really. They had a sign up that said, LeBron won Kuzma his ring And I said, Without Bron, Cleveland wouldn’t be shit.”
Kyle Kuzma had extra motivation on his game-winning 3
"There were some hecklers during the game talking to me so I had to. It was their fault, really."
"They had a sign up that said, 'LeBron won Kuzma his ring'"
"And I said, 'Without Bron, Cleveland wouldn't be shit.'" pic.twitter.com/mcgy3aqtCe
— Hoop District (@Hoop_District) November 11, 2021
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Kyle Kuzma never got bitter at LeBron James for the trade
Since his second stint with the Cavs, LeBron James has often been called LeGM, because fans feel he is a shadow GM. So when the Lakers traded away Kuzma, a lot of the jokes were aimed at Bron for the move. But Kuzma has no resentment towards Bron or the Lakers for it.
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Back in September, Kuzma cleared the air about this during his appearance on the No Chill podcast with Gilbert Arenas. He said, “It’s all love. It’s all love for sure. I think even a couple of days after I got traded, we were hanging out, chilling, whatever.”
Even if there was any bitterness, Kuzma will be happy now considering the opposite fortunes for the Lakers and the Wizards. Not only are the Lakers struggling, but are also dealing with injury issues. On the other hand, Kuzma is enjoying a solid start with his new team, who are currently #1 in the East after their win over the Cavs.
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Kuz will have to wait until March to make his return to the Staples Center to face the Lakers, and it will be a very interesting battle.
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