Olympic Performances by LeBron James & Steph Curry Leave Lakers & Warriors Without Excuses

Steph Curry and LeBron James are still top-tier players.

Despite this, the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers seem hesitant to make bold moves for a championship run. This is frustrating for their fans.

Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy Jr. and Lakers GM Rob Pelinka have been cautious, but after Curry and James led Team USA to Olympic gold in Paris, their approach seems flawed. If they can’t build winning teams around these stars, maybe they shouldn’t be in charge anymore.

Curry had an outstanding Olympics, yet the Warriors didn’t make any significant trades last season. They had valuable assets like Jonathan Kuminga, Brandin Podziemski, Moses Moody, and Trayce Jackson-Davis but chose not to use them.

Trade Frustrations:

Fans might think it’s silly that Dunleavy didn’t trade Kuminga for Paul George or Podziemski for Lauri Markkanen. These players would fit well with Curry and Draymond Green. Even if Kuminga and Podziemski become All-Stars later on, it won’t help Curry now since he’s already 36.

LeBron James was the MVP of the 2024 Olympics basketball tournament but must be frustrated with the Lakers’ lack of action. The Lakers could have traded their future picks for Myles Turner or Buddy Hield in 2022-23 but didn’t. They also missed out on getting Kyrie Irving.

Both trades would have made the Lakers more competitive against Denver in recent playoffs.

Pelinka did nothing at the 2023-24 trade deadline and hasn’t improved the roster this summer either. He blames it on the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, but it seems like he’s just trying to keep his job safe by not taking risks.

The Lakers have superstars like James (turning 40) and Anthony Davis but aren’t making big moves to win now.

Respect is another issue here. Curry and James are legends who deserve full support from their teams to win championships again. Hearing them talk about limited opportunities should embarrass both franchises.

Either go all-in with Curry and James or trade them somewhere that will appreciate their talent fully—maybe even together so they can dominate with their unique play style until they retire!

What do you think? Should these teams take bigger risks?