In two months, LeBron James will celebrate his 40th birthday, and don't count on him to be in early retirement. The day before, he had announced that he wanted to play all 82 matches this season, and it is not a back-to-back against direct candidates for the playoffs that will scare him. This night, against the Kings, he signed the best evaluation of the evening with a 113th career triple-double: 32 points on 12 of 22 shots, 14 rebounds and 10 assists!
Above all, we will remember this incredible heat stroke at the start of the 4th quarter. Thanks to De'Aaron Fox, the Kings took a 7-point lead at the end of the 3rd quarter. And then, Dalton Knecht will launch an incredible series: a 21-0! The rookie leads the way on a complicated 3-pointer, and then LeBron James takes care of everything. A first 3-pointer from eight meters, then an And-1 under the circle, and another 3-pointer on a shift from D'Angelo Russell. The “King” smiles at the audience, and as he is hot, he does it again despite the outstretched arms of Domantas Sabonis.
An “insane” performance
Freeze frame: LeBron James has just scored 16 points in three minutes, including eight in a row. The Lakers took a 14-point lead. “What can I say about LeBron… We are truly blessed to witness his greatness for so long. This is truly insane.” testifies JJ Redick, still undefeated for his debut on the bench.
As for LeBron, 100% in the last quarter, he is in line with what he showed at the Paris Olympics. He is fresh, happy to be on the pitch, and his whole game exudes pleasure.
“I no longer need to look for my spots throughout the match, like when I was 22” he explains. “I have the luxury of playing alongside an MVP caliber player. Austin can score. DLo can catch fire. Rui is consistent and he can also score points. This team is not built around me. This team is not built for me to score 16 points at the start of the 4th quarter. We must continue to play together.”
