LeBron Calls Out Lakers' Flaws After Thunder Loss, 'That's a Championship Team… We're Not'
Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James kept it real in his assessment of where L.A. stands following Monday night's 119-110 home loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
When asked by reporters to offer a comparison between the Lakers and Thunder (beginning at the 2:53 mark of the video), James said, "That's a championship team right here, we're not."
James went on to add, "We can't sustain energy and effort for 48 minutes and they can. That's why they won a championship."
Both the Lakers and Thunder were without key players on Monday, so it wasn't a true representation of what the teams look like at full strength.
Lakers superstar guard Luka Dončić missed his second consecutive game with a hamstring strain, while reigning NBA MVP and NBA Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was out once again for OKC with an abdominal strain that will keep him on the shelf through the All-Star break.
The Thunder's depth was on full display without SGA in the lineup, as seven players scored in double figures, including Jalen Williams, who led the way with 23 points.
Similarly, six players scored in double figures for the Lakers, including LeBron with a team-leading 22 points, but they shot just 32 percent as a team from beyond the arc compared to 42 percent for OKC, which was perhaps the biggest difference.
The Thunder won their first championship last season since moving to Oklahoma City back in 2008, and they have remained the best team in the NBA throughout the 2025-26 season.
At 41-13, the Thunder lead the San Antonio Spurs by four games for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, and they are one game better than the Detroit Pistons, who lead the Eastern Conference with a 39-13 mark.
As for the Lakers, they have had their fair share of ups and downs this season, and much of that is due to injuries with Dončić, James and Austin Reaves all missing time due to injury at various points.
With Monday's loss, L.A. fell to 32-20 on the season, placing it fifth in the Western Conference.
While that is a decent spot to be in, the Lakers are just 1.5 games up on the seventh-place Phoenix Suns, which is significant since only the top six seeds earn automatic playoff berths.
When at full strength, the Lakers are among the most talented teams in the league, but they have struggled against some of the Western Conference's elite teams, going 0-2 against OKC, 1-2 against the Spurs and 0-1 against the Houston Rockets.
LeBron and the Lakers won't have much time to regroup, as they will be right back at it Tuesday night with a home game against a Spurs team that is 36-16 on the year.
