Letters: Readers agree, LeBron James can leave the Lakers

For once, Bill Plaschke went on the hyperbole and created an accurate picture of who LeBron James has become. To put it simply: “Rebuild without him” is not only the right answer, but the only one.

Too bad James is unlikely to be gone before he breaks Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s goalscoring record. That date won’t give Lakers fans much reason to cheer.

“See you” will.

Barry Bauling
Kalabasas

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The Lakers should just trade LeBron James. It’s a team sport and he cries over everything. For a guy who doesn’t play defense and stands around and doesn’t move, he has no space to talk about everyone else and their lack of play. He whines at every foul on the pitch. All he wants to do is get the ball on the pitch for more personal stats.

James Simpson
Newport Beach

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LeBron is worried about losing. But it’s his turnovers, lack of defense and poor shot selection that hurt the team. He wanted Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook on the team. Davis is a part-time player and Westbrook is an expensive mediocre player. Jeanie Buss recently gave Rob Pelinka a contract extension, suggesting she doesn’t hold him fully responsible for the current squad and the team’s woes.

Bernie Kovac
port city

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I have my own company and I don’t want an employee who doesn’t want to work for me. They underperform, get beaten, and negatively impact morale and the performance of others. It’s time to expose LeBron’s bluff and let him go somewhere else. The organization needs to understand that they own the team and call the shots. Not LeBron.

Flora Perry
Los Angeles

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OK, I’ll say it. LeBron’s signing was the worst decision in Lakers history. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy watching him play and really appreciate how dominant he can be. But we’ve pledged our present and future to trying to assemble a team around him. The plan isn’t working and is taking us further and further away from the championship fight with each passing year.

Vincent Martinez
South Pasadena

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LeBron James said, “I don’t want to end my career playing at this level from a team perspective.” Such amazing leadership skills! And one more thing: your career IS over.

Andreas M Weiss
Playa del Rey

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What a stark contrast of character on Thursday’s sports department front page. On the one hand, a moving tribute to Roberto Clemente, a great ball player and philanthropist who always put others before himself. Next column, a whining LeBron James talking to reporters about himself and his own greatness.

Rhys Thomas
gorge

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We are approaching the 10th anniversary of Jerry Buss’ death. We’re also approaching the 10th anniversary of the slow and steady decline of a once great sports franchise.

In a way, it’s quite a tribute to Mr. Buss that the Lakers have managed to retain the hearts and dollars of their large and loyal fan base after so many years of failure. Without the attractive Lakers brand, the team would have become the laughing stock of the league much sooner. The franchise has almost sunk to where it was in the Donald Sterling Clipper era.

I gave up on the Lakers for good that season. Luckily we have another local NBA team that has a Jerry Buss type owner. Like Jerry Buss, Steve Balmer doesn’t pretend to be a basketball genius. He loves the sport and his team and hires the best people to figure out how to win.

Fred Goeber
Playa Vista

farmer riddle

We’re actually in talks about bringing Trevor Bauer back? It was heartbreaking to hear Dodgers fans take his domestic violence suspension with a grain of salt for being a good pitcher. There are dozens of good pitchers in MLB who don’t attack women. But shame on the Dodgers for signing him in the first place knowing of his bad character and questionable behavior.

It’s bad enough they couldn’t strike a deal with Justin Turner, last season’s Roberto Clemente Award winner. But people want to bring Trevor Bauer back? When the Dodgers bring him back, they’ll have a lot to explain to Dodgers fans who have been victims of sexual assault and domestic violence.

Andrea Bremser
Los Angeles

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As a teenager, people were presumed innocent until proven guilty. These days it seems guilty until proven innocent. As far as I can tell, Trevor Bauer is innocent on trial. In the court of public opinion, Bauer is found guilty, and with that, the Dodgers will release Trevor Bauer. My how our world has changed.

Chris Sorce
fountain valley

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Maybe now is the time to ask the players on the team about Trevor Bauer. No one likes what they’ve heard about his behavior. Nobody wants to say that winning is all that matters. But on the other side of the question, is public relations all that matters? When we remember that Bauer has not been charged or prosecuted, and this is America, we have to ask: are we completely believing in a person’s ability to apply their livelihood skills to an allegation?

Scott W Hamre
Cherry Valley

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If history has taught us anything, there is only one team that would sign Trevor Bauer.

The robbers.

Paul Feininger
Agoura Hill

Problems in SoFi Stadium

The elephant in the room that no one talks about externally in relation to SoFi Stadium is that it has become a drunken, combative free-for-all among fans, particularly during Rams games.

I know of one of the female staff members who was lifted off the ground and then hit in the body by a drunk fan trying to enter one of the clubs without a proper pass. He got in and was eventually kicked out. And this is not a one-off event.

Multiple fights and brawls in each game are the norm – five or more per game.

Not a good sign for SoFi’s future.

Hank White
Los Angeles

big city flair

Thanks to Eric Sondheimer for naming Dijon Stanley High School Footballer of the Year.

By highlighting Stanley and other great City Section school players, hopefully kids and parents will see that you can play with friends at their neighborhood schools and still win awards and scholarships. You don’t have to drive two hours across town to a new part of town just to maybe get on. With the transfer portal wide open, a child just needs to be placed on a college team. If you have what it takes, the big schools will find you.

Jeff Heister
Chatsworth

Bravo, disgust

Jeff Miller’s article on the incredible achievements and drive of the inimitable Austin Ekeler was a great gift to readers on Christmas Day. A true leader and humble athlete with unusual abilities, Ekeler is a remarkable role model, a beacon of positivity and an example of what determination can harvest.

John Jacobs
Los Angeles

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