In December, one of the greatest streaks in pro sports ended when Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James scored eight points against the Toronto Raptors, bringing his run of 1,297 consecutive double-digit scoring games to a close.
On Sunday, another remarkable LeBron James streak nearly ended as “The King” endured one of the worst playoff games of his career — finishing with 10 points (2-for-9 FG), four rebounds, nine assists and eight turnovers with a plus/minus of -18.
When James made a driving layup at the 8:36 mark of the fourth quarter to reach 10 points, he extended his double-digit playoff streak to 144 games. He was subbed out two minutes later as the Lakers fell to a 100-77 hole en route to a blowout loss.
LeBron James Streak Stays Alive
James has now scored at least 10 points in 144 consecutive playoff games dating back to Game 5 of the 2014 Eastern Conference Finals against the Indiana Pacers. On that night, James shot 2-for-10 and finished with seven points as the Miami Heat failed to close out the Indiana Pacers on the road after taking a 3-1 series lead.
The only other time James failed to score points in the playoffs came in the infamous Game 4 of the 2011 NBA Finals when he shot 3-for-11 against the Dallas Mavericks.
Before Sunday’s game against the Rockets, James had scored just 10 points on only two other occasions in his playoff career — against the Portland Trail Blazers in August 2020 (Orlando Bubble) and against the Detroit Pistons in May 2007.
LeBron James Takes Accountability
After committing an uncharacteristic eight turnovers in Sunday’s loss, James took accountability and promised to be better in Wednesday’s Game 5.
“It started with me, obviously,” James said, via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
“My turnovers were unacceptable.”
The Lakers, playing without Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, did a really good job generating offense through the first three games. JJ Redick’s team had 29 assists in two of the three wins, but could manage only 23 dimes in Sunday’s loss.
“Defense wasn’t our problem tonight,” James said. “It was our offense.”
In the absence of Doncic and Reaves, the likes of Luka Kennard and Marcus Smart have shouldered a lot of ball-handling and playmaking duties for the Lakers. But Redick admitted after Sunday’s loss that his team misses its star-studded backcourt.
“That’s the biggest challenge we have is just the ballhandling and downhill drivers, not having those guys,” Redick said of the Lakers missing Reaves and Doncic.
While Reaves (oblique) is reportedly on track to return for Wednesday’s Game 5, Doncic (hamstring) is not expected to suit up before a possible second-round series against the Oklahoma City Thunder. The positive news is that Doncic has resumed movement workouts and is expected to progress to 1-on-1 and full-court scrimmages soon.
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