That LeBron James guy is pretty damn good at basketball.
The Los Angeles Lakers came out victorious tonight behind a whopping 46 points from LeBron, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 115-108. At times, it definitely seemed like a game against an inferior opponent that the Lakers were going to lose due to their energy, but LeBron didn’t let that happen with an insane end to the game.
Here’s our recap.
Player of the game – LeBron James
This one is pretty easy. It’s LeBron James.
The King broke his season-high for points this season, only four days after breaking it against the Milwaukee Bucks with 34. He one-upped that total tonight (and then some), ending with 46 points on 73.1% shooting from the field and an insane 7/11 from three. He added a great game all-around, filling out his stat line with eight rebounds, six assists, two steals, and two blocks. He came out of the gate on fire, finishing the 1st quarter with 17 points before taking a bit of a rest throughout the middle part of the game. He would not let the Lakers fall on the road, dropping 21 points in the final frame to ensure the Lakers victory.
Stat of the game – 31.3% on three-pointers
Last season, the Lakers shooting 31.3% from three would not have been noteworthy. Hell, it might have been considered a good night for the team back then. However, the Lakers have turned themselves into one of the better three-point shooting teams this season, making 39.3% of their threes on the season (coming into tonight). That mark is good enough for 5th in the league, as the Lakers missed out on a possible blowout game this evening with them being off from deep. Aside from LeBron, the team was a terrible 3/21. Oof.
Quote of the night – “We get out the way”
AD, on what the Lakers do when LeBron has it going like he did tonight.
"We get out the way."
— Harrison Faigen (@hmfaigen) January 26, 2021
This was Anthony Davis’ response to what the other Lakers do when LeBron has it going. Davis definitely did just that, only taking 16 field goals to LeBron’s 26 as Davis fell back to earth following his 37-point performance against the Bulls. Davis did have a good defensive game, disrupting the Cavs’ offense with three steals and three blocks.
What’s next?
Doc Rivers on whether he expects Embiid to play Wednesday against the Lakers: "I expect, but I never know. We'll wait and see."
— Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA) January 25, 2021
The Lakers will take their road trip to the city of brotherly love, taking on the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday. Be on the lookout for the status of Joel Embiid, as he was held out of tonight’s game against the Detroit Pistons after coming into the game “Questionable” with a back injury. Other than that storyline, the Lakers will be running into old friends in Danny Green and Dwight Howard.
Tip-off will be another early one, at 4:30 p.m. PST.
