Game 82 carried significant implications for the Los Angeles Lakers to clinch the eighth spot in the Western Conference going into the Play-In Tournament. LeBron James understood the magnitude of the situation and made his stamp early against the New Orleans Pelicans.
James spent much of the first half getting his teammates involved, finishing with 13 assists at the half and ultimately collecting 17 for the game. In contests with high stakes, it does not get much better than having the four-time champion leading the charge with all that he has experienced in his 21 seasons in the league.
A teammate that benefited from James setting the table is D’Angelo Russell, who was spotted up as a shooter and ready to score off his passes. Russell believes that when the 39-year-old is making an immediate impact on the game, it allows the role players to flourish, as seen on Spectrum SportsNet:
“When you have LeBron dominating the game from every cylinder, point guarding the whole game, basically quarterbacking the whole thing, it allows us to be dangerous when we get the ball without having to think about anything or do anything like that. It allows TP to be aggressive, have his imprint, Rui, Gabe, Spence, myself, AR, just the supporting cast. It allows us to be efficient and aggressive in our moments.”
Outside of James, every starter finished in double figures, which ultimately was the deciding factor in picking up a much-needed win on Sunday. Russell, who struggled the previous three games, found himself with some positive regression as he had 19 points on 6-for-13 from the field and 5-for-10 from 3.
While it is hard to ask for a repeat performance against this same Pelicans team with a playoff spot on the line, having role players like Russell, Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves continue to be assertive and capable scorers will be the key to success, and no one knows that better than James.
LeBron James feels better physically going into playoffs this year than last
With the regular season concluding, every player is dealing with some sort of injury and end up gutting it out in the postseason. This is the case for LeBron James as he spent the majority of the season on the injury report with an ankle injury.
However, he seems to have more bounce in his step this time around than last season, which bodes well for a potential playoff berth. After closing out game 82, he was asked about how he felt heading into another possible postseason run and confirmed that he feels better physically this year than last season.
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