Getty Lakers star LeBron James
At 39 years old and with 21 NBA seasons under his belt—that’s now 1,492 games and 56,597 minutes in the regular season and another 287 games with 11,654 minutes in the playoffs—LeBron James would be well within his rights to feel a bit tired and banged up at this time of year. That was the case for the Lakers last season, of course, when James was dealing with pain in his right foot and ankle.
After the April 14 season finale against the Pelicans, James updated his 2024 bill of health and declared that, at the very least, he is in better shape than he was a year ago when the Lakers played Minnesota in a play-in game to earn the No. 7 seed in the playoffs.
This year, they will play in New Orleans, where the Lakers beat the Pelicans, 124-108, again on Tuesday night. After that win, James compared his health to last year at this time.
“Better than I did at the end of the season last year, going into the postseason,” James said after Sunday’s game. “Obviously, still dealing with it, whatever the case may be, some small things here and some small things there. But I take a lot of pride in the offseason. Just trying to get my ankle and my foot back in order, get my body back in order throughout the regular season.”
Lakers Will Get an ‘Extremely Physical’ Game From Pelicans
But now begins the Lakers’ big challenge with the regular season behind them. And LeBron James is warning his teammates to be ready for a bounce-back game in New Orleans. The Lakers will need to win their way into the playoffs and can earn the No. 7 seed by beating the Pelicans again in New Orleans on Tuesday.
The Lakers forced 19 turnovers and held Zion Williamson to 12 points on 4-for-13 shooting. The Pelicans will be ready with adjustments on Tuesday, and James warned the Lakers to be ready for that.
“Tuesday’s game is going to be extremely hard, extremely difficult, extremely physical. You know, I’ve always known when you play a playoff series—and I am looking at this like a two-game playoff series—when you win that first game, a team has multiple days to kind of sit on that feeling, you know, sit with that taste in their mouth, of defeat, so, they’re gonna be extremely ready for us.
“We have to come in with the same sense of urgency we had the previous game.”
LeBron James Logs Triple-Double in Finale
For James, his season numbers have been beyond impressive, given his age and longevity. He has averaged 25.7 points, with 7.3 rebounds and 8.3 assists, making 54.0% of his shots and 41.0% of his 3-pointers (a career high).
But he is proud of one number in particular: 71. That is the number of games he has played this season, not including the In-Season Tournament championship.
“That’s pretty cool, at this point in my career to be able to play 70-plus games, be available for my guys, and only a couple of them because of injury or illness, being sick,” James said.
Also worth noting is the fact that James was outstanding in Game 71 on Sunday. He logged 28 points with 17 assists and 11 rebounds, adding five steals. He came out with eight assists in the first quarter and 13 in the half.
“I just want to win, so whatever the game presents itself for me to be, more of an attacker in the scoring range, or if it needs me to be more of a set-up guy, or be more of a defender, I gotta do it all. I am a Swiss Army knife, so, I gotta do it all on the floor and none of it is predetermined,” James said.