LeBron James put on a record show to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to much-needed NBA success.
With 56 points in a 124-116 win over the Golden State Warriors, the 37-year-old tied Trae Young’s NBA season record on Saturday (local time) and helped the Lakers to their first win after previously losing four in a row.
James scored 16 points in the final nine minutes of the game alone, hitting three threes in 76 seconds. With 34 seconds left, James connected with teammate Carmelo Anthony for the decisive three-pointer. The Lakers turned the game around by outscoring them 35-22 in the final quarter.
“There are really no words for that. An unbelievable performance by the best player ever,” Lakers coach Frank Vogel said of James’ performance. “He was phenomenal,” Anthony said. It was James’ best score in a California jersey and the third-highest point output in his 19-year NBA career. His personal record (61) was set in 2014 for the Miami Heat.
The much-criticised Lakers are still only ninth in the Western Conference with 28 wins and 35 losses, but once again sent a signal on their way to the play-in tournament (places 7-10) for the championship round. “Desperation” drove the team on Saturday night, James said, “just desperation. We needed this win, it means a lot. It’s good to get it done in front of our own fans, they deserve it.”
For their part, the Warriors, for whom Steph Curry finished with 30 points, are going through a bit of a slump; it was their fourth straight loss. But they remain clearly on course for third in the West. “They’ve stumbled a little bit lately, but we’ve been stumbling all season,” James said. The Lakers had lost 11 of their previous 14 games.
Dallas wins without Doncic
A real thriller was delivered by the Dallas Mavericks and Sacramento Kings – 114:113! Without Luka Doncic (toe injury), the Mavs were down by 19 points at one point, but in the end they cheered after a three-pointer by Dorian Finney-Smith with 3.3 seconds left. Maxi Kleber missed his second straight game with an ankle injury.
Wagner brothers reunited
The brothers Franz and Moritz Wagner suffered a 96-124 (45-68) defeat with the Orlando Magic at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies. A weak second quarter saw the visitors trailing by 23 points at the break. Moritz Wagner recorded his first double-double of the season with 17 points and eleven rebounds and managed double figures in two statistics. The 24-year-old returned to Orlando’s squad after overcoming a rib injury and missing nine games. Franz Wagner finished with 15 points.
Orlando had previously won three out of four games, but with a total of only 16 victories, the team is bottom of the Eastern Conference.
