NEW ORLEANS (AP) — LeBron James was sitting in the locker room Tuesday night — after scoring 30 points in 33 minutes to help the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Pelicans — when the question of whether he could play the next night in San Antonio arose.
“The rest of the season, every back-to-back, that’s TBD,” James said.
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“I’m 41 years old. I’ve played the most minutes in NBA history,” James continued with an incredulous smile. “Deposit it in the bank now, okay? What are we talking about?”
There are just times when James — the NBA’s all-time leading scorer who reached 40,000 regular-season points for the first time in his career (42,575 and counting) — can still play with an energy and efficiency that makes him look younger and more durable than when he missed the first 14 games of the season with sciatica.
James was dominant from the opening 30 seconds to the final minutes, helping his team to a 111-103 victory over the Big Easy. He dunked and hit a three-pointer just 19 seconds into the game, setting up a decisive 18-4 run in the fourth quarter.
It was the second time in three games that James has scored at least 30 points, having scored 31 points in Friday’s win over Memphis.
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Lakers head coach J.J. Redick said he doesn’t necessarily expect that kind of performance from James on a regular basis, but he also doesn’t want to limit the prolific 23-year NBA superstar.
“I know LeBron. I know how much he put in for this. It’s just realizing game after game what he has,” Redick said, comparing James to MLB Hall of Fame pitcher Greg Maddux in the final years of his career.
“Every night, he doesn’t play his best, but he’s good enough to win,” Redick said. “I’m his catcher and I have to figure this out.”
“What’s the best way to utilize him…based on the opponent, based on coverage, based on the way he moves?” Redick continued. “It’s really just an ongoing conversation with him.”
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James said he thinks Luka Doncic is the Lakers’ top player now and it’s up to him and the rest of his teammates “to adjust our game around him and figure it out.”
“It’s not a problem for me,” James added. “That’s not a problem.”
James said his goal after the win in New Orleans was to get a good night’s sleep.
“I want my body to heal. That’s the most important thing,” James said. “See how I feel in the morning, try to get a little more rest, see how I feel when I wake up from my nap. … We’ll go from there.”
But James also emphasized that he doesn’t plan to take too many games off when he doesn’t know how many more games he can play before retiring.
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“When I’m able to put it on, I’ll appreciate it more every night,” James said. “I never take getting to the NBA for granted, but I think at this point in my career, being 41 years old, I just appreciate having the ability to get out there.”
Redick will continue to try to get the best out of him — without wearing him down.
“To me, what he did at 41 and what he did last year at 40 is great,” Redick said. “It’s just another form of greatness.”
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