LeBron James Has Fully Embraced a Role He’s Never Played — and the Lakers Are Thriving Because of It

LeBron James has reinvented himself more times than any superstar in NBA history — but this season, he’s doing something unprecedented.

Now two weeks into his 23rd NBA season, LeBron is playing a role he has never taken on with the Los Angeles Lakers:

an off-ball cutter, a physical screener, a floor connector, and, surprisingly, the ideal glue guy.

For a player who built his legend orchestrating every possession, this transformation would seem unlikely. But on a Lakers team now built around Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, LeBron has accepted a drastically reduced usage and embraced an entirely new identity within JJ Redick’s offense.

🔄 A Reinvention Rooted in Intelligence — Not Ego

Rather than running the show, LeBron has shifted into:

• off-ball cutting
• smart, physical screen-setting
• catch-and-shoot spacing
• secondary creation only when needed

It's deliberate, and it’s working.

The Lakers’ offense has become more layered and less predictable, with LeBron’s movement creating subtle advantages that compound over the course of a game. Each well-timed slip screen, each instinctive cut, and each relocation forces defenses to honor him — even at age 40.

And that’s the beauty of this version of LeBron:

He’s still a threat without touching the ball.

🟣🟡 The Perfect Third Option — Because He Chose to Be

When LeBron screens for Luka Doncic, defenses can’t solve the puzzle:

• Switch? LeBron punishes mismatches.
• Drop? Luka gets daylight.
• Commit two to the ball? LeBron slips into open space.

This dynamic has given the Lakers a level of offensive versatility they lacked last season. The burden is lighter, the movement sharper, and the hierarchy cleaner.

Instead of overlapping roles, the Lakers’ stars now complete one another.

And that balance exists because LeBron leaned into being the third option — not the first, not the second — for the first time in his career.

🧩 This is the LeBron Version Few Expected — but the Lakers Needed

The “glue guy” label undersells it, of course. LeBron is still LeBron:

he manipulates angles, punishes switches, and reads defenses faster than anyone alive.

But the term captures how he’s become the connective tissue of the offense.

He keeps the ball flowing.

He punishes overplays.

He fuels spacing with calculated movement.

He elevates star creators with veteran precision.

In a league obsessed with heliocentric stars, LeBron is proving that winning basketball in 2025 requires stars who can play without the ball too.

And at age 40, he’s modeling that better than anyone.

🏁 A Choice That Says Everything About His Legacy

None of this is accidental.

None of it is forced.

It is the decision of a player who has nothing left to prove individually — only championships left to chase.

LeBron’s willingness to adapt at this stage of his career reflects:

• humility
• basketball genius
• a deep understanding of his roster
• and a commitment to winning above all else

By embracing this new role, LeBron James is giving the Lakers exactly what they need — not more, not less, but precisely what makes them dangerous.

And that may be his most impressive reinvention yet.