"It's a breath of fresh air to be around everyday" - LeBron James expresses gratitude for Carmelo Anthony's presence on the LA Lakers roster this season
That LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony are great friends is no big secret. Both players are teaming up for the first time on the same NBA team in their legendary hall-of-fame careers. The two combined yet again to bring up the LA Lakers' 19th win of the season in a 108-103 victory at Crypto.com Arena on Monday night. LeBron had 26 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals in the win, while Carmelo Anthony contributed 14 points on 5-of-10 (50.0%) shooting.
Opened 2022 how we closed 2021. #LakersWin https://t.co/xZ1CawuKAZ
Commenting on how special Carmelo Anthony has been in playing off the bench for the Lakers this season, LeBron was effusive in his remarks about his friend. LeBron said:
"He just knows who he is. He is not trying to be anything that others may think he should be or how he viewed himself in the past. He is the true definition of 'in-the-moment person'. He just has a sense of calm. He has 'this is who I am' and 'this is how it's going to go' aura about him."
LeBron added:
"It's a breath of fresh air to be around everyday. Never gets too high, never gets too low or he's never going to show you that even if he does. He just knows what he means to this ball club. He knows what he means to this game at this point in his career. He's accepted who he is and is still great at it. I'm happy to say that I finally got an opportunity to team up with him for the full season."
'He never gets too high, never gets too low… He’s accepted who he is and he’s great at it and I’m happy to finally say I get a chance to team with him for a season." @KingJames' on @carmeloanthony's attitude and approach. https://t.co/u2jjQ7zr5Z
LeBron's 30-point games streak comes to an end
Although LeBron James and the Lakers walked away with the W versus the Minnesota Timberwolves, there was a touch of disappointment as LeBron's seven-game streak of 30-plus point games came to an end. LeBron had gone past the 30-point mark in each of the Lakers' games since they played Chicago on 19 December 2021. In the Lakers' previous outing, LeBron even tallied a season-high of 43 points versus the Portland Trail Blazers.
LeBron's streak may have ended versus Minnesota, but he remains the player with the most 30-point games this season. LeBron has 15 30-point games this season, which is one more than the number of 30-point games tallied by Kevin Durant and Trae Young. The interesting thing here is that LeBron has also played fewer games (26) than Kevin Durant (29) or Trae Young (32), but is still leading the league in this category.
It's about drive, it's about power. https://t.co/muiLHkgh1F