LeBron James stats tonight: 40-point night not enough to beat Warriors in thriller (March 16)
LeBron James matched his season-high in points in a game tonight, but it wasn’t enough as the LA Lakers succumbed to the Golden State Warriors, 128-121. The game had huge postseason repercussions, as the two teams are vying for at least a spot in the play-in tournament.
The 39-year-old LeBron James logged almost 38 minutes and scored a game-high 40 points to lead the Lakers. He also had nine assists and eight rebounds.
However, the Warriors had a balanced attack, with five players scoring in double digits, led by Stephen Curry’s 31 points. Klay Thompson and Trayce Jackson-Davis poured in 26 and 10 points off the bench, respectively, while starters Jonathan Kuminga and Andrew Wiggins had 23 and 16, respectively.
Anthony Davis played just under 12 minutes in the game. He was listed as probable with bilateral Achilles tendinopathy before the game. He took the court but exited before halftime due to a corneal abrasion. Davis was limited to eight points and four rebounds.
D’Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves had 23, 14 and 11 markers for the Lakers, respectively.
Below are LeBron James’ stats from the game:
Why the loss is huge for LeBron James and the LA Lakers
With the loss, the Lakers dropped to 36-31, dropping them to 10th place in the Western Conference. The Warriors, who improved to 34-31, moved above them to ninth. However, with 14 games remaining, the race for the play-in tournament spots is getting complicated.
The Warriors hold the advantage over the Lakers in head-to-head matchups this season, having won two of three encounters. This could be crucial in the event of a tiebreaker between the two teams. They clash for the final time this regular season on Apr. 9.
According to Tankathon, the Warriors have an easier schedule for the remainder of the season than the Lakers.
Since joining the Lakers in the 2018-19 season, LeBron James' highest number of games played in a season was 67, which he achieved in the 2019-20 season. With 58 games played this season and the Lakers needing him for the rest of their games, James will need to surpass his Lakers record as the team seeks to reach the playoffs.
The Lakers had a late-season turnaround last season and will need to replicate that success this time to improve their position in the play-in picture.