ICYMI: LeBron James lies exhausted on the LA Lakers bench as Stanley Johnson hilariously gives him chest compressions in defeat against Dallas Mavericks
Although the LA Lakers came up short against the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday, the game saw an inspired stretch by LeBron James, who produced a moment that summed up the Lakers' season so far.
Heading to the bench after a Luka Doncic turnover, LeBron James looked absolutely exhausted as he lay on the bench after his performance.
After facing a 15-point deficit in the third quarter, the Purple and Gold rallied together to bridge the gap against the Mavericks. Featuring a string of awesome plays by the aging superstar, the Lakers also managed to take the lead with less than three minutes left in the quarter.
Visibly drained as he headed to the bench, 'King James' was hilariously greeted with excitement from Stanley Johnson, who was celebrating the lead spurred by James' performance. All LeBron could do was catch his breath after a stretch of high intensity action while Johnson gave him chest compressions.
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The LA Lakers would go on to close the quarter with a 87-85 lead. Featuring three consecutive three-pointers by LeBron James, one of which came from the logo, the Lakeshow were in a good position to win the game.
: TNT)Gotta love Logo LeBron.
(📺: TNT) https://t.co/F7sSFwaA72
But the tides would shift yet again in the fourth-quarter as Luka Doncic went to work. Ending the night with 25 points, Doncic put on a show at the Crypto.com Arena.
LeBron James' struggles with the LA Lakers this season
With another loss on the books, the LA Lakers continue to face difficulties this season as their roster woes continue to plague them.
With their third consecutive loss since the All-Star break, the Purple and Gold have fallen well below .500 and will find themselves in position to fall out of play-in contention if things continue.
LeBron James' performance in the third quarter against the Mavericks saw him lead the Lakers' charge. Ending the game with 26 points and 12 rebounds, James continues to be a solid performer on the stat sheet.
LeBron James is averaging 29/9/6 on 52% shooting since January 9.
The Lakers are 6-15 in that span. https://t.co/mi3toQGcd3
Although LeBron's third-quarter heroics wouldn't be enough to secure the win, the Lakers still put on a competitive showing. A rare sight since the All-Star break.
No particular entity is to blame in this scenario. The overall team effort has been subpar as the side struggles to maintain consistent effort over a period of 48 minutes.
While the stat sheet presents some impressive figures, the eye test has been anything but. The blowout loss against the New Orleans Pelicans is a great example of this.
SInce Anthony Davis fell out of the rotation due to injury, the LA Lakers have seemed like a team without an identity. Additionally, factoring in Russell Westbrook's inconsistency, there is very little James can do.
As the LA Lakers struggle to find an identity at this point in the season, the side will also face growing concerns in the form of internal strife. With a tough schedule up ahead, the Purple and Gold will have their work cut out for them if they hope to turn their season around.