As the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Memphis Grizzlies on April 16, LeBron James was making his return to the postseason after a one-year absence.
Throughout the contest, LeBron rolled back the years and provided a commanding performance as he marshaled his team’s offense and put battled on the defensive end. Following the game, Lakers legend Magic Johnson took to Twitter to praise LeBron’s leadership while also giving D’Angelo Russell some credit for his role in the win, too.
LeBron’s incredible leadership was on display! Both he and De’Angelo Russell controlled the offense and had every player involved. He finished with a 21 point, 11 rebound double double.
“LeBron’s incredible leadership was on display! Both he and De’Angelo Russell controlled the offense and had every player involved. He finished with a 21 point, 11 rebound double double,” Johnson Tweeted.
LeBron ended the contest against Memphis with a statline of 21 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, and 3 blocks while shooting 50% from the field and 37.5% from deep.
LeBron James Speaks On Rui Hachimura
During the Lakers’ April 16 contest, Rui Hachimura had arguably the best game of his career, as he found ways to make an impact on both ends of the floor while also ending the game as Los Angeles’ top scorer.
When speaking to the media after the contest, LeBron discussed Hachimura’s game, crediting him for his shot-making ability throughout the night.
“He was huge,” James said about Hachimura. “Like you said, he hit timely shots. They made runs in the third quarter, he hit two 3s in a row. They made another run in the fourth quarter, he hit another 3 of an AR (Austin Reaves) pump-fake, drive, behind-the-back pass. He also had a beautiful, turnaround baseline jumper by their bench. He was just on time, on target all night tonight and we needed that, especially coming off the bench, especially as well as their bench is. They got so many great players come off their bench. So we was able to counter that with Rui’s big game.”
Hachimura is a former lottery pick, having been drafted ninth overall in 2019, and is currently in his third season of NBA basketball.
LeBron James Discussed Austin Reaves’ Heroics
Entering the fourth and final quarter against the Grizzlies, Austin Reaves came alive, shooting 100% from the field and finding ways to spur his team toward the finish line in a bid to gain momentum for the remainder of the series.
After the game, LeBron discussed Reaves’ big performance, explaining how his teammates trust the undrafted sophomore guard to perform when they put the ball in his hands.
‘I’M HIM”
Austin Reaves letting the world know 🗣
“We trust him with the ball in his hands early in the game and late in the game,” James said. “So we got something going in the fourth quarter, and after every stop or if we didn’t get a stop or whatever, I think Jaren Jackson went on like a 5-0 run by himself when we went up seven, we went back to AR and just put the ball in his hands, he was able to hit a pull-up two, able to hit a three when they kind of had a soft switch and then hit another pull-up two to put us up eight. So he closed the game for us offensively.”
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Magic Johnson Issues Statement on LeBron James After Lakers Beat Grizzlies