LeBron James is always motivated to play against his former team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, considering that he was instrumental in bringing the franchise their first and only NBA championship so far. LeBron is loved in Cleveland after that achievement but obviously, some resent him for leaving on two different occasions. It’s safe to say that James has a complicated relationship with the Cavs now.
Nothing summed this up better than his performance against them on Monday night. James recorded a monstrous 38-point triple-double in a much-needed win for the Los Angeles Lakers and even said he didn’t care too much about it afterward. But as they say, ‘no pain, no gain’, something LeBron learned when getting kicked in the face by the rookie Evan Mobley.
LeBron played stellar defense on Mobley in the post, taking a bump before stripping the ball from his hands. As James bent down to pick up the ball and complete the steal, Mobley was slow to react and was still going up for his shot, ending up hitting LBJ in the face with his leg.
LeBron fell to the floor clutching his face but was able to get up and carry on with the game. The play happened thanks to his excellent hustle and active hands-on defense too, For someone that has been criticized time and again this season for not taking the defensive end of the floor seriously and giving up on plays, this was excellent to see from LeBron, even if he took a leg to the face for his troubles.
The mood around the Lakers camp seems to be improving a bit, which was unthinkable as recently as last week. The Cavaliers have been a very good team this season and to beat them like this was impressive by the Lakers. And if it means that this form continues and the Lakers make it to the playoffs, then LeBron James is probably willing to take a couple more shots to the face to make it happen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L697J3e3TPQ
