Which NBA team and player does Shannon Sharpe root for? All you need to know

Former NFL tight end-turned-Fox Sports analyst Shannon Sharpe has long been an outspoken fan of the NBA. But there’s one player in particular that Sharpe is known to root for.

This player is none other than LA Lakers superstar forward LeBron James. However, Sharpe isn’t loyal to a specific team. Instead, he has made it known that he will root for whatever team James plays for.

Shannon Sharpe has been supporting LeBron James for as long as anybody can remember. The two are even known to be close friends that hang out from time to time.

Over the years, Sharpe has consistently ranked James above Michael Jordan when it comes to the greatest player of all-time (GOAT) debate.

Earlier this year, during an appearance on his show “Undisputed” with co-host Skip Bayless, Sharpe was asked if James’ off-the-court impact helped his GOAT case. He argued that it won't even matter by the time James' career is over as his on-court accomplishments will be too overwhelming.

“If he (James) averages what he's been averaging this year, he'll be in the top four all-time in assists. ... At the same time, he's about to be the No. 1 scorer of all-time,” Sharpe said.

Shannon Sharpe then spoke about LeBron James’ consistent dominance in regards to winning:

“The man has been in more Finals damn near than everybody, with the exception of the Celtics and the Lakers. I think that speaks volumes.”

Finally, Sharpe gave one last argument in support of his favorite player:

“The All-NBAs, the MVPs, the Finals MVPs, the Finals appearances – the totality of his body of work. ... Skip, look, obviously if you put off-the-court into it, it’s not even close. ... But I don’t factor that.”

Sharpe’s support of James even goes beyond words too as he is known to break out his GOAT mask on special occasions.

Overall, one would be hard-pressed to find a bigger LeBron James supporter than Shannon Sharpe.

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Shannon Sharpe on the LA Lakers’ early-season struggles

Fox Sports analyst Shannon Sharpe

Shannon Sharpe may be rooting for LeBron James' LA Lakers.

However, like any other Lakers supporter, Sharpe has expressed his frustrations with the team’s disappointing start to the new NBA season. The Lakers are currently 0-3 after being plagued by shooting struggles across the board, despite improving defensively.

Following their second loss of the season, Sharpe called out Lakers president and general manager Rob Pelinka for the team’s poor roster construction. This came after reports suggested that LA would not make a move until Thanksgiving at the earliest.

“Rob Pelinka, do you understand what it really takes to build a team? ... If you don't make a move by Thanksgiving, you're gonna be out of playoff contention. Because you're hoping for the play-in right now,” Sharpe said.

He then added that the Lakers need to surround James, with shooters:

“If LeBron James is your best player, and you see what he's done... LeBron James has won championships with shooters. Your two best players need shooters to space the floor.”

Sharpe, a former NFL star, compared it to building around a quarterback in football.

“If your quarterback is the best player on your team, you build your offense around what the quarterback does really well.”

Following the Lakers' third and most recent 106-104 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, he once again lamented their horrible team shooting.

“They are a horrible shooting team. The Lakers are shooting 21% from 3-point range, that’s the second-worst all-time to start a season,” Sharpe said.

New reports have since come out regarding possible trade targets for the LA Lakers. If the Lakers don’t make some moves to improve their shooting soon, then it could be too late for their playoff aspirations.