A bit of a cheat code, isn’t it?
That’s essentially what LeBron James represents at the moment for the Lakers, winners of 8 in a row and leaders of the NBA at 15-2.
The King had yet another quintessential performance Monday night in San Antonio, accounting for L.A.’s first 25 points in the fourth quarter thanks to a flurry of threes and some key dimes to JaVale McGee, Danny Green and Anthony Davis.
That stretch allowed the purple and gold to open up a double-digit lead against a team that gave Frank Vogel’s squad fits throughout the night.
It was as simple as LeBron loading up the cannon and letting it fly with reckless abandon. James shot 13-for-24 for the night en route to his team-leading 33 points. Along the way, he became the 5th player ever with 12,000 made baskets.
He also went 4-for-7 from beyond the arc, surpassing Peja Stojakovic to rise to 18th all time (1,761).
"I just want to be able to not have any weaknesses,” he admitted.
“He was unbelievable,” Vogel said. “I gave him opportunities to get a quick blow around timeouts if he wanted to, and he said he felt good, feeling fresh. He just dominated the action. He was quarterbacking us on the defensive end, and really made every play offensively.”
It wasn’t just the scoring though.
James dealt 12 of his 14 assists in the second half, with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope becoming a favorite target in the third quarter.
KCP, a key cog on a defense that held the Spurs to just 39.5% after halftime, showed he still has the hot hand – both to snatch oranges…
…and rain fire at the buzzer – sort of a tradition in the current road trip.
Besides LBJ’s excellence, Coach Vogel credited Davis for his contributions on both ends of the floor.
AD finished with a 19-12-6 stat line, with a pair of steals and 2 loud blocks.
“Offensively Anthony had a bit of a slow start, and really picked it up in the second half,” Vogel said. “(He had) 15 points in the second half, hit some big buckets for us, rolling to the basket, and every way that he scores. I challenged these guys on the defensive end for where (we were) in the last couple of games…I felt like we had another level to reach, our guys reached it in the second half.”
The Lakers held San Antonio to just 28 points in the paint, 12 second-chance points, and six fast break points – all signs of a positive defensive performance.
And in the opposing basket, L.A. had just nine turnovers and shot 42.4% from long-range, with Rajon Rondo and Troy Daniels nailing three apiece.
The quality of those contributions remains the silent hero in this winning streak.
And of course, there’s nothing quiet about what LeBron is doing. He’s the one wearing the cape.