The Lakers lost to the Pistons 110-113 tonight in Detroit. This loss put an end to their nine-game winning streak in the NBA.
LeBron James fell one rebound short of his 153rd career triple-double as he put up 12 points, 10 assists, and nine rebounds while shooting 4-10 from the floor (40.0 FG%) and 1-2 from beyond the arc (50.0 3P%).
While this seems like an efficient game, James had a slow start tonight. He did not put up a single point in the first half of the game, which is why he ended up with only 12 points, significantly below his average of 21.0 points per game this season.
Following the game, James spoke to the media and pointed to his new role on the roster as the reason for not making a single one of his five shot attempts in the first half.
“It’s the role that I’m playing for the ballclub. In order for us to win ball games, it’s the role that I’m playing. And that’s just how the game was going,” James said.
This was the first time in 16 years (since James hasn’t had a scoreless first half since 2010), and only the third time in his entire career that LeBron James ended up playing a game where he didn’t score in the first half.
JJ Redick also addressed it during his postgame press conference, but seemed to claim that it was James who decided to play more unselfishly today and wasn’t playing a role usually expected from him.
“I thought he played a really unselfish game. Ended up with 10 assists. We missed him a couple times… We ran some plays for him, and he did a really good job of not just trying to score and make the right play like he always does, and got 10 assists,” said Redick.
Therefore, it seems that while James has not explicitly been told to shoot less and look to pass more, he has come to his own realization that it may be best for the team if he does that instead of looking for his own points.
It was indeed shocking that this formula for success did not work for the Lakers tonight against the Pistons, who played without their star player, Cade Cunningham. LeBron James felt their team deserved the credit for outperforming them even without him.
“Of course, you give credit where credit is due. They’re the No.1 team in the East. They have a really good team, even with their All-NBA player being out. I give a lot of credit to them. We gave ourselves a chance. That’s all you can ask for.”
Subsequently, James was also asked if there was any difference in the two games that the Lakers played against the Pistons this season.
“None. They’re super physical and super fast, they’re playing well, executing well-coached, no difference other than their MVP-type player being out, but when you have a really good team, guys step up,” James concluded.
Until a few hours before the game, the Lakers’ critics, like the NBA legend Charles Barkley, said the formula for the Lakers’ success comes from LeBron James playing off-ball. Even James himself has shown faith in the idea of sacrificing if that’s what the team needs to win.
But tonight has become a classic example of why LeBron James needs to be more aggressive in scoring as well for the Lakers to have any chance against serious title contenders. If Cunningham was on the court tonight, the Lakers may have even been blown out.
So what does this mean for LeBron James’ role on the team? Let us know what you think in the comments section.
