“That’s why he the GOAT man; he’s like our Jordan” – Malik Monk compares LeBron James to Chicago Bulls legend after LA Lakers superstar comes up clutch in OT win against Indiana Pacers
Malik Monk just compared LA Lakers teammate LeBron James to Michael Jordan. Monk made the comparison on Wednesday night with the Chicago Bulls legend after LeBron put up 39 points against the Indiana Pacers in an overime win for the Lakers.
LeBron’s season-high score came after he served his one-game suspension, resulting from his altercation with Isaiah Stewart in the game against the Detroit Pistons on Sunday.
Playing against Indiana on Wednesday, LeBron scored his final 17 points in the last 10 minutes of the game (last five minutes of the fourth quarter and five minutes of overtime). LeBron had nine of the Lakers’ last 16 points in regulation and then dropped another eight consecutive points for the purple-and-gold franchise in the extra five minutes to give the Lakers a 124-116 win. The highlight of LeBron’s clutch performance was him hitting back-to-back threes to give the Lakers a six-point advantage with less than two minutes left to play in overtime.
Monk, who had 17 points and a season-high eight rebounds for the Lakers in the game while coming off the bench, could not stop himself from praising LeBron in the post-game presser. Monk said:
“That’s what he does. That’s why he the GOAT, man. He going to take control of the game. Let everybody know we no rush. He’s going to be bring us home, man. That’s what I seen, like I’ve been watching my whole life, man. He’s like our Jordan, of my generation. I’m just blessed man to be able to be out there with him and just learn from him everyday.”
LeBron puts up a “performance for the ages”, says Lakers head coach Frank Vogel
LA Lakers head coach Frank Vogel was also very adulatory of LeBron’s game-high performance. Vogel said in the post-game media interaction:
“I’m just proud of our guys of how we competed on the defensive end and how we stayed in the game. There were several times we were down 10 [points]. We kept fighting. Obviously, the big fella took us home. What LeBron did tonight was a performance for the ages. I know these fans and how much they love their hoops here in Indianapolis and he put on one hell of a show. He gets the game ball.”
With Anthony Davis not playing against Indiana because of flu-like symptoms and DeAndre Jordan restricted to only 20 minutes of playing time, LeBron also had to play the center position for the Lakers in the game against Indiana. That added to the demands on the 36-year-old, but LeBron came through in flying colors. Vogel said of the 17-time All-Star:
“It takes a lot of energy. I know he wanted to get this W. He really wanted to play in that Knicks game [one-game suspension] at Madison Square Garden. He looks forward to that every year. It was very disappointing for him to not be able to be in that game. Bounced back tonight. You said it right there, to quarterback the defense and carry the load offensively, it’s a special performance.”