The Borneo Post

Hollywood delight as ‘King James’ seals deal to Lakers

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LOS ANGELES: Hol lywood rol led out the red carpet for LeBron James on Sunday as the basketball superstar confirmed his blockbuste­r move to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Tinseltown celebritie­s and Lakers legends expressed delight at news of the deal while NBA rivals digested a move that sent the odds on a Los Angeles revival next season tumbling.

Lakers icon Kobe Bryant was among the first to congratula­te James on his four- year, 154 million deal.

“Welcome to the f amily úKingJames,” Bryant wrote on Twit ter. “ü l aker s 4 l i fe üstrivefor­greatness”

The Lakers have not made the NBA playoffs for five straight years, the longest streak of futility in franchise history.

But Kareem Abdul- Jabbar, the six-time NBA champion who was part of the Lakers dynasty through the 1980s, expressed hope that James’s arrival signaled a change in fortunes.

“I am sure the Lakernatio­n is rejoicing,” Abdul- Jabbar wrote on Twitter. “The acquisitio­n of LeBron James means that the Lakers are just a smidgen away from being real contenders.”

That belief appeared to be shared by Las Vegas oddsmakers, who rapidly installed the Lakers as contenders for next season’s NBA crown.

The odds on the Lakers lifting the NBA title in James’ first season fell to 7-2 on Sunday on the Westgate SuperBook following a flurry of betting.

Only the reigning champion Golden State Warriors are ahead of the Lakers in the betting.

Rival NBA players appeared to have been shocked by the move. “Damn,” was the one-word verdict of Golden State’s Nick Young.

Milwaukee Bucks point guard Eric Bledsoe meanwhile added: “Didn’t see that one coming.”

ESPN analyst Adrian Wojnarowsk­i said James’ move represente­d a “seismic shift in the league” which sees him follow in the footsteps of Lakers icons such as Abdul- Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlai­n and Shaquille O’Neal.

“They all went from the East to the West and all found their way to LA,” Wojnarowsk­i said on ESPN. “In a lot of ways it’s the logical next step, maybe the final step, for LeBron James.”

Enter tainment indus t ry luminaries, fellow athletes and public figures were also ecstatic.

“LeBron welcome to Los Angeles,” former action hero and California Governor Arnold Schwarzene­gger declared on Twitter in a video message. — AFP

 ??  ?? File photo shows LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers dunks against the Golden State Warriors in the first quarter during Game Three of the 2018 NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. — AFP photo
File photo shows LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers dunks against the Golden State Warriors in the first quarter during Game Three of the 2018 NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. — AFP photo

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