LOS ANGELES – Once again, LeBron James took a shot that dropped through the net. Once again, James heard the legions of Lakers fans cheer over his latest highlight reel.
Yet amid James’ seemingly never-ending quest to delay Father Time, sometimes the Lakers’ 39-year-old star surprises himself. So as he began a fourth-quarter scoring outburst that ended with a 131-127 win over the Sacramento Kings on Saturday at Crypto.com Arena, James twirled his fingers around his temple. Lakers center Anthony Davis also twirled his fingers, a symbolic gesture to convey that James may be crazy.
“Just when you think he’s slowing down, man,” Davis said afterwards at his locker while shaking his head. “He continues to show the world why he’s the greatest.”
After the Lakers’ win over Phoenix on Friday, James pledged that he would play in Saturday’s game against Sacramento and that he would strive to play in all 82 games. James followed through on his vow. The Lakers (3-0) ensured their strongest start since the 2010-11 season mostly because of James’ late-game heroics.
James finished with his 113th career triple double in points (32), rebounds (14) and assists (10). He scored 16 of his fourth-quarter points within a four-minute span, which the Elias Sports Bureau noted are the most amount of points he scored in that short of a span during his seven seasons with the Lakers (2017-present). And James accomplished all of this on the second night of a home back-to-back slate.
“We've all been very fortunate to watch his greatness for so long,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “And the fact that he's able to keep doing it, it's just, it's actually insane. It's actually insane.”
James appeared to think the same thing.
Within a two-minute span, James turned the Lakers’ identity from vulnerable to dominant. After Lakers rookie Dalton Knecht canned a 3 to cut Sacramento’s lead to 94-90 with 11:47 left in the fourth quarter, James scored 11 unanswered points. He started with a 28-foot 3-pointer. He continued with a 17-foot jumper, a layup and a free throw. He ended the run with a 28-foot 3 that gave the Lakers a 101-94 cushion with 9:58 left.
That prompted the Kings to call timeout and for James to twirl his fingers around his temples. And why not? James fulfilled this job description despite playing on the second night of a back-to-back.
“I could do that at 22,” James said. “But at almost 40, I don’t need to be doing it for four quarters.”
James then called Davis an “MVP-caliber player” for posting 31 points on 10-for-15 shooting, nine rebounds and two assists. James praised the Lakers’ various role players, including Rui Hachimura (18 points, nine rebounds), Austin Reaves (16 points on 7-for-12 shooting) and D’Angelo Russell (16 points on 6-for-11 shooting).
“This team is not built for me to have 16-point quarters through all four quarters,” James said. “That’s not how it’s constructed and nor should it be. We’re a team and we all play together.”
Following the Lakers’ win over Phoenix on Friday James had called Davis “the main focal point” after finishing with 35 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two blocks. Despite his triple-double performance against Sacramento (0-2), James argued that Davis made ‘the biggest shot of the night” when he made a 3 that gave the Lakers a 128-123 edge with 37.7 seconds left.
James’ confidence in his teammates might explain why he initially felt reluctant to become the team’s star once again.
“He actually looked to the bench and was trying to come out the game,” Davis said. “We told him, ‘You’re not coming out.”
James obliged. For yet another night, James showcased his greatness by relying on his brute strength, decision-making and clutch shots. To his dismay, Redick often witnessed James display these qualities as an opponent during his 17-year NBA career. In only his third game as the Lakers’ head coach, Redick still called it “a surreal moment to watch him, coach him.”
As James has learned through the past two decades, however, no need to celebrate much over the first week of the NBA regular season. The Lakers have a five-game trip with stops in Phoenix (Monday), Cleveland (Wednesday), Toronto (Friday), Detroit (Nov. 4) and Memphis (Nov. 6). That stretch includes games against three playoff contenders. One of those games coincides with a return to his former team (Cleveland) along with his 20-year-old son and teammate (Bronny).
“It’s going to be special,” James said. “He was born in Northeast Ohio, I was born in Northeast Ohio. We got a lot of ties back there, obviously. So, it will be special to be there with him and have that moment. Obviously, there’s a lot of footage of him running around after games and dribbling a basketball and shooting on those hoops. So, it’s going to be pretty cool.”
Mark Medina is an Lakers/Clippers columnist for Sporting Tribune. Follow him on X.
