Lakers insider reveals Lebron James and Lakers’ frosty relationship to begin the new season

The Los Angeles Lakers dropped their season opener to the Golden State Warriors, 126-116, on Wednesday, but the attention after the game was on their star, LeBron James, and his lack of enthusiasm on the sidelines.

There was nothing to cheer about for Los Angeles as Luka Doncic’s near triple-double performance wasn’t enough to carry the Lakers to the win; however, James was not seen cheering once for Doncic or any other player’s makes during the whole game. 

The star missed the first opening game of his career due to sciatica and is not expected to make his season debut for a few weeks.

James’ icy attitude drew speculation and criticism online until Lakers insider Jovan Buha confirmed that the “vibes” have not been good as of late between the three-time NBA champion and the organization.

“Yeah, I mean I don’t wanna play armchair psychologist here, so I’m — I wanna refrain from too much speculation But the vibes with that situation have not been the best, I’ll say. So, again, I don’t really wanna go too much down that road, but yeah, I mean, I thought there were times just looking at the huddle or looking at the bench that he wasn’t as engaged as he typically is when he’s out,” Buha said.

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Tonight is the first time Lebron James will not appear in his team’s opening game in his 23-year career. pic.twitter.com/gJlc8YQRAe

— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) October 22, 2025

Buha also said that James’ behavior on the sidelines is not normal to his typical attitude when he gets sidelined due to injury.

“You just never know what some — someone’s having a bad day or something’s going — whatever. You don’t wanna project onto people what you think they are feeling or acting like. But just in the observations I made of the body language, was not great, and I do think it was a bit different than what it has been in the past in this same situation of him being out.”

The Lakers are still in the midst of a culture change after Doncic arrived in LA after a blockbuster trade that sent longtime Lakers big man Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks.

Reports have surfaced that the Lakers organization has hinted at wanting Doncic as the face of the franchise, despite James still being active and entering his 23rd season.

James has praised his new teammate in recent interviews, but reporters noticed in the preseason that the two stars rarely interacted on the bench.

Meanwhile, head coach JJ Redick said postgame that James helped the coaching staff dissect the loss against the Warriors.

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