Friday’s topic of the day is shaping up to be LeBron James’ comments about the difficulties facing the next face of the league. And his longtime media chronicler Brian Windhorst is in agreement on the upside down state of the discourse around the NBA and its superstars.
After Thursday night’s Lakers victory over the Timberwolves, James spoke to the media in the locker room and said he couldn’t blame Anthony Edwards for not wanting to be the next face of the NBA because of the “weird energy” of the basketball media and his belief that “all the people that cover our game and talk about our game on a day-to-day basis s–t on everybody.”
On Friday morning’s edition of Get Up on ESPN, Brian Windhorst agreed with James and said that the league is in better shape that it’s ever been and greatness is not celebrated as much as it should.
“I think we are out of balance in the way we look at the NBA where we don’t celebrate the greatness as much as we should.”
—@windhorstESPN on LeBron James’ recent comments on being the face of the NBA pic.twitter.com/poSfkt8ptM
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) February 28, 2025
“I do think LeBron on the basis level is correct. I do think we are out of balance in the way we look at the NBA where we don’t celebrate the greatness as much as we should. There’s more focus on negativity,” Windhorst said.
But Brian Windhorst said that the positivity around the league isn’t just the sole responsibility of the media that covers the game, but the NBA itself. He then listed off a number of superstars that had huge accomplishments and great performances this week, but were barely a blip on the national radar.
“When I say ‘we’ I’m not just talking about the media. I think the league itself doesn’t celebrate how great the league is every single night. This week, Monday Zach Lavine had a 42 point game, Tuesday we saw a 151-148 game, Wednesday Tyrese Haliburton was awesome, he’s having one of the best stretches in the NBA. Last night we had Steph and LeBron, we haven’t even got to the other games, Zion had his first ever triple double, you haven’t even heard it yet,” he continued.
As Windhorst continued, he then took a stand that runs counter to much of the prevailing thought in the national media about the current state of play in the NBA. Instead of bemoaning the three point barrage and current style of play, Windhorst proclaimed the NBA has never been better than it is right now.
“Every single night the league is absolutely awesome. And yet there’s a prevailing belief the league is in a bad place. This is absolutely preposterous. As someone who has done this every day for the last 22 years, the league has never been better. It’s not even a question. But we don’t celebrate it enough. I’m not saying you get rid of the stuff about negativity and the arguments, but I do think it’s out of balance. I wouldn’t agree with everything LeBron said, but on his baseline level he does have a point,” Windhorst concluded.
NBA fans and players aren’t asking for the media to be blind cheerleaders when it comes to the league and what can be improved upon. Just take the NBA All-Star Game for example. But for all the drama that exists, it is an entertaining product on a nightly basis. But for whatever reason, it always seems like the discussion around the league is focused on what players can’t do versus what they can and on players and teams who are disappointments more than successes.
Even LeBron James himself is being under-appreciated this season. The Lakers are rolling, they acquired Luka Dončić, and James is putting up 25-8-9 in YEAR 22 in the NBA at 40 years old. But instead of living in the moment, we have to always do some kind of tired old LeBron vs Jordan thing. Or we’re talking about Kevin Durant being miserable in Phoenix. or Joel Embiid being injured again.
Imagine how different the NBA conversation would be today if the media just talked about how great Anthony Edwards, Jayson Tatum, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are playing instead of what they may lack to be the next face of the NBA. Does the NFL media constantly sit around and ask for the game to return to where it was in the early 90s? Of course not.
And the point Brian Windhorst is making is that maybe folks would enjoy the NBA a little more if everything wasn’t a meta conversation about an existential crisis that may not even exist in reality.
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