Getty LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers.
The All-Star break is a time for players to unwind, have some fun, and play zero defense. Well, Los Angeles Lakers fans wish LeBron James abided by that rule during the All-Star Game because he apparently injured his hand while trying to go for a block.
At halftime, it was revealed that James would miss the remainder of the contest, which likely sent all of LA into a panic. From the post-game comments, however, it seems as though it was simply a precautionary measure.
“Coach [Mike] Malone is a defensive-minded coach,” James explained via Yahoo Sports. “I had him in my early days in Cleveland, and I told him I would get one stop tonight for him. And I tried to get one little chase-down block and got my finger caught in the rim. But I’ll be fine, I’ll be fine. I don’t think it’s too much to worry about. But for precautionary reasons, I just had to take the rest of the night off.”
In the end, James only played 14:25 in the All-Star Game, which some Lakers fans could consider to be a good thing. Despite the injury scare, which sounds like it’s nothing, he ended up not having to risk any further ailment by sitting out for the entire second half.
Unfortunately for James, his absence from the game could have helped lead to his first loss in All-Star Game history since the inclusion of captains. Until last night, James was undefeated as a captain in the All-Star Game, but Team Giannis took home the victory this year.
James finished the night with 13 points, one rebound, and four assists on 6-of-11 shooting from the field and 1-of-5 shooting from behind the three-point line.
LeBron James Sends Message on Kyrie Irving Team-Up
In addition to his injury scare at the All-Star Game, James also made waves in Laker Land for his comments about Kyrie Irving, who he selected to be on his team for the game. After the contest, James praised Irving, noting that it’s always a good time when he gets to team up with his former Cleveland Cavaliers teammate again.
“It’s always great to team back up with Kyrie,” James said via CLNS Media. “Obviously, you guys know how I feel about Kyrie, both on and off the court. So, it’s always good to see him. Very proud of him, very proud of the man he’s become in his life right now.”
LeBron James Upset With Anthony Davis
On top of that, according to Collin Cowherd of ESPN, James may not be too happy with Anthony Davis at the moment.
“According to sources – the NBA has a lot of leaks because players have a lot of power, and there’s a handful of reporters they trust, and when they want stuff out, especially if you’re LeBron or KD [Kevin Durant], or the big dogs, they get stuff out…,” Cowherd stated during a recent segment on ESPN’s The Herd. “LeBron wanted to go down about 34 minutes a night. Once again, in Year 20, he’s playing 40 minutes tonight in big games. So, I think this just signals [that] LeBron’s not happy with AD. He’s doing the end-around a little bit. He’s not happy with Darvin Ham not holding him accountable. They’re playing LeBron too many minutes, but if you watched the Lakers pre-trade, they had to play him. It’s the only way they can compete against good teams, is LeBron plays 40 minutes, because you don’t know what you’re getting with AD. So messaging is real, it’s obvious, and I’m not opposed to it.”