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As he prepares to debut with the L.A. Lakers, the NBA’s biggest star has emerged as one of the town’s hottest producers, setting up a dozen film and TV projects and starring in a new ‘Space Jam’ as he sounds off on Serena Williams (“I feel that struggle”) and becoming a Trump Twitter target: "What bothers me is that he has time to even do that." It's a Wednesday in early September, and LeBron James — newly minted Los Angeles Laker, $1 billion Nike endorsement juggernaut, noted Trump repudiator — is folded into a golf cart whirring across the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank. Shouts of "LaaaaaBraaaan" and "Welcome to L.A.!" pierce the air. Here, where star sightings are routine and treated with studied indifference, the 6-foot-8, 250-pound James is a different story. Strangers ask for selfies, tell him how thrilled they are that he's in town and divulge their hopes that he'll revive what was once the NBA's most glamorous franchise. James, 3...

The Los Angeles Lakers opened their preseason Sunday in San Diego. Who cares! I don’t care. The NBA should shut up for at least another couple weeks. Did they win? Who were their opponents? Who led them in scoring? Don’t care! On the other hand, LeBron James logged his first (exhibition) game action as a Laker. It didn’t count as a basketball game, but it did count as an opportunity to work on getting used to the sight of LeBron in a Lakers uniform. It still looks  weird . Looks kinda weird! James played 15 minutes in the first half, then sat out the rest. The bounce pass to Ingram is filth; the effortless, laser-accurate outlet to Josh Hart is classic LeBron; the hairline looks pretty dece. For now. By Albert Burneko, deadspin.com

The Los Angeles Lakers obviously nailed the offseason by signing LeBron James. The team could’ve signed the rest of this website’s staff in the rest of free agency and still would have merited a B+ at worst for their summer. And Anthony plays like this. That being said, the decision the front office made that looks the most questionable at the moment is how they completely punted on filling out the roster’s depth at center. Right now the Lakers have two players that have played significant NBA minutes at the five (JaVale McGee and Ivica Zubac), one rookie who appears like he’ll be most effective there (Moritz Wagner) and zero great options to fill out all 48 minutes per night at that position. That is, unless they have a hidden plan waiting in the wings (pun intended, given where James has traditionally played). Or maybe a not so hidden one, since an anonymous Lakers executive has leaked that the team is excited to see LeBron as a small ball center in their version of a “death lin...