LeBron and Davis Are Breaking Records AND Winning Games
The Lakers started off poorly but seem to have found their groove in the past month.
The Los Angeles Lakers had a rocky start to this season but it looks like they’re getting back in the right gear.
And they’re doing it as their stars rack up personal achievements.
Take for instance this weekend, when two of the Lakers stars did special things.
LeBron Passes Magic
On Friday night, when the final buzzer rang, LeBron James took over Magic Johnson’s sixth spot on the All-Time Assists leaderboard by having a total of 10,150 assists on his career stat sheet.
Magic, for those who are curious, recorded a total of 10,141 assists.
After the game, LeBron took some time to soak in his accomplishment and to pay homage to the Laker legend.
Via The Score:
"It means a lot, obviously," James said. "The way Magic approached the game, it was very infectious. His teammates loved playing with him because of the joy he played with and the ability to pass the ball and get other guys involved. He was always excited about seeing his teammates be great.
"I always admired that in him. What's even more humbling and super duper cool is the fact that I'm doing it in a Laker uniform and knowing how much Magic means to the Laker franchise."
Anthony Davis Enters Multiple Exclusive Clubs
Then on Sunday night, Anthony Davis scored 55 points on the Washington Wizards after dropping 44 points on the Milwaukee Bucks the prior night.
This may not sound super special, but here’s the kicker -he made 76 percent of his shots.
And because of that, Davis is the third player in NBA history to score at least 95 points and have a field goal percentage of at least 70 percent over a two-game span.
The other two players who achieved this feat were WIlt Chamberlain (1967,1969) and Kevin McHale (1985).
Additionally, Davis entered another exclusive club with his stat line.
He is the first player to record 50-plus points, 15-plus rebounds, and 3-plus blocks on 70-plus percent shooting in a regular season game since New York Knicks’ legend Patrick Ewing did it in 1990.
And another “additionally” - Davis joined Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal as the only Lakers’ players to record 40-plus points and 10-plus rebounds in back-to-back games.
After smashing all of those records, Davis told the media that his health -the thing that all Lakers fans are concerned with- is the reason why he’s playing so well lately.
Via Spectrum Sportsnet:
“Just being healthy, going out with a mindset of just dominating,” Davis said.
“I started off slow, took a couple games to get in-game shape, in-game rhythm. I've just been feeling really good and confident on all my shots, playing with a great pace. Guys have been doing a great job of finding me.”
However, as great as all of these individual accolades are, the thing that makes them special is that the Lakers are winning games.
The Lakers Getting Back on Track
After starting the season in the red sea of losses, the Lakers have won 8 of their last 10 games.
They’re still only sitting on the twelve seed in the Western Conference, but it’s still early in the season. If they keep up this good play, that will improve sooner rather than later.
But the major question is if they can keep this up.
In recent seasons, the Lakers haven’t exactly been the healthiest bunch.
LeBron missed a bunch of games last season (and some at the beginning of this season) and Davis hasn’t played more than 50 games since his first season with the Lakers back in 2019-20.
However, these are just “what ifs.” And hopefully, they remain just that because this team can do some damage in the playoffs and it’ll be really fun to watch.