A few hours after LeBron James was placed in the NBA's health and safety protocols for reportedly testing positive for COVID-19 (twice), the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Sacramento Kings, 117-92, behind strong efforts from Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook.
Following a sluggish first half — in which the Lakers looked understandably demoralized by yet another speed-bump in their roller-coaster season, and the third ailment for LeBron James in 2021-22 — Los Angeles, sparked by an apparently Coach Taylor-esque halftime address by Frank Vogel, responded with a 37-15 third quarter, 40-8 run, and 67-33 second half overall.
Davis had 25 points on 12-of-22 shooting, plus seven boards, two blocks, and two steals. Westbrook put up 22 points, six rebounds, and five assists. The Lakers (12-11) were pleased to win their second game in a row — buoyed by Malik Monk (22 points) and Dwight Howard (12 points, 13 rebounds) off the bench.
In the postgame, Vogel, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook were first and foremost concerned with LeBron's surprising diagnosis, which rattled the NBA world.
“It was something that was unexpected, for sure,” Davis said. “Found out this morning. Did more testing and we didn't really hear anything afterward. Woke up from a nap and any media outlet that covers anything had it on and said that he was in the health and safety protocols. It wasn't like a shocker for us … we just can't catch a break. We're just getting guys back and he's out … how many days we don't know…Still gotta find ways to win. We can't let that affect us. Obviously, he's a huge part of our team, but I think we played a huge amount of games without him. So we kinda know how that is already, and we gotta continue to play how we did on the defensive end as we did until he comes back.”
The Lakers are 4-7 without James this season.
LeBron is vaccinated and, thankfully, asymptomatic. Davis said he contacted LeBron earlier in the day, and used Joel Embiid's recent bout with the virus as a point of reference.
“I talked to him today,” AD said about LeBron. “Me and LB is close and I checked on him. Just hearing what Joel Embiid said: obviously (Embiid) was scared. He said that he thought he wasn’t going to make it. COVID is a scary thing. Especially with all the new variants coming out and all that…it’s a scary situation. (LeBron) said he’s good. He said he’s asymptomatic, which is a good sign, but we want to make sure that he gets back. Health is what’s most important. It’s bigger than basketball. He has a family and we want to make sure that he’s good no matter what. Like this Basketball Thing don't stop…He’s part of our family and we want to make sure he’s good…He seemed to be fine, but I know he’s watching basketball and he’s excited, so the win probably helped him fight this off as well.”
https://open.spotify.com/episode/6L7QT8tDJ3RF060SkgvLE7?si=bdd61e59f46e42bd
Beforehand, Vogel declined to delve into specifics on LeBron's status.
“Found out this morning that he was gonna be entering the health and safety protocols,” Vogel shared. “We arranged for him to get transportation back to LA safely. That’s pretty much all I can say about him.”
In their respective postgame remarks, Russell Westbrook and Malik Monk expressed their reaction to LeBron contracting COVID — the first Lakers player to do so this season.
“Bron's been hurt a little bit so we knew that somebody else was gonna have to step up,” Monk said. “It's basketball, man. With this COVID stuff you never know what's gonna happen.”
Russell Westbrook said he would call LeBron when he had a chance to see how he was feeling.
“My thing is more just him just mentally and physically, it can be difficult — playing or not playing. And I know he wants to play and he wants to compete. That’s where my main thing is, so I’ll definitely call and check on him once I leave here. Check his mental, make sure he’s in a good space.”
Before the game, Vogel said he believed the Lakers, having recently developed more “cohesiveness,” were more equipped to handle LeBron's absence right now than they were when he began his eight-game stint on the sidelines with an ab strain earlier this month.
Vogel calls LeBron entering health & safety protocols "a huge loss."
"It’s disappointing. We just want the best for him right now, that’s where our thoughts are."
He thinks LA is farther along w/ their "cohesiveness" to handle LeBron's absence now than when he strained his ab.
— Michael Corvo (@michaelcorvoNBA) December 1, 2021
The Lakers will next face the Los Angeles Clippers (Friday) and Boston Celtics (Tuesday) at home before a road back-to-back against the Memphis Grizzlies (12/9) and Oklahoma City Thunder (12/10).
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