Former NBA forward Chandler Parsons isn’t buying what Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James is selling when it comes to flopping.
After the Lakers lost to the Los Angeles Clippers last week, James said he needs to “learn how to flop.” The future Hall of Famer is averaging just 4.8 attempts from the charity stripe per game this season, which is the lowest mark of his career.
However, Parsons thinks James already does flop, so he doesn’t totally understand the 18-time All-Star’s comment.
“Learn how to flop… this man flops!” 😂@ChandlerParsons on LeBron James saying he needs to learn how to flop#RunItBack with @MichelleDBeadle @ShamsCharania @bansky
📺: https://t.co/Q9hUtU7eB9 pic.twitter.com/JDHuJhwlbv
— FanDuel TV (@FanDuelTV) November 15, 2022
During his comment about flopping, James said he noticed that a lot of players in the Lakers-Clippers game on Wednesday were shooting a lot of jump shots and still getting to the foul line.
It’s notable that he said so. As James has aged, he has started to rely on jump shots more, and since he started doing so, he’s seen a decrease in trips to the foul line.
Some fans may see that as the biggest reason why he hasn’t gotten a ton of foul calls in recent years. However, he may not be satisfied with that explanation if he feels like other jump shooters are getting to the line frequently.
Regardless, the Lakers are certainly hoping that calls will start to go James’ way in the near future. The team could use as much help as possible as it tries to overcome its 3-10 record.
Overall this season, the Lakers are averaging 23.0 attempts from the charity stripe per game, which ranks 19th in the NBA. That 23.0 mark is slightly below the league average of 23.4.
The Lakers may need to earn some respect before they start to get the benefit of the doubt, and the easiest way to do that is by winning some games.
Los Angeles has a manageable stretch coming up, mostly because three of the team’s next five games will come against the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs are 6-8 on the season.
The Lakers certainly need to take care of business in winnable games if they want to inch closer to .500. L.A.’s next game will come Friday against the Detroit Pistons.
