LeBron James and Anthony Davis scored 26 points apiece to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a tight 94-92 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday. The Lakers relied on their two superstars to close out the Grizzlies in the fourth quarter.
Having just turned 36 years old last week, James was once again clutch down the stretch, as he nailed a turnaround jumper from 16 feet with a little over a minute remaining to extend L.A.'s lead to five. Davis and James then made two free throws each on the Lakers' next two possessions to take the game out of reach for the Grizzlies.
Asked about whether these performances from the 16-time All-Star still surprise him, Anthony Davis admitted he isn't shocked one bit from seeing James still play at such an elite level at this stage of his career.
Via Ryan Ward of Lakers Daily:
Anthony Davis on if he still gets surprised by LeBron's performances: "It's not surprising at all. … It's crazy to see that in his 18th year, but the numbers he's putting up is not surprising. … It's just a testament to the type of player that he is. He puts in the work…" pic.twitter.com/vAaJ1EcJ8I
— Ryan Ward (@RyanWardLA) January 6, 2021
Are we really supposed to be surprised, though? Any fan in his right mind certainly didn't envision any kind of significant drop-off from The King, especially since he's just nearly three months removed from winning his fourth NBA title and Finals MVP.
Looking at his stats through eight games, there admittedly has been a slight dip in James' production. He's averaging 23.9 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 7.4 assists while shooting 47.7 percent from the field. Nonetheless, these are still elite numbers, especially for a 36-year-old who's just 17 games away from playing 2,000 career games (including playoffs) in his career.
LeBron is undoubtedly a generational talent. His greatness and longevity at the top of his game is unmatched. Unfortunately, it has gone to the point where he's a little taken for granted.
The fact that most of us are shrugging at his elite output, even at age 36, is a testament to that notion. Appreciate LeBron James while he's still playing because there simply won't ever be another one like him.
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