The load is obviously heavier now for LeBron James, with Los Angeles Lakers superstar big man Anthony Davis out indefinitely with a stress injury in his right foot. James, however, has been busy defying — or rather embarrassing —  Father Time with the incredible stretch he's having since Davis went down with the injury.

With LeBron James in the zone, some can't help but compare the stretch he's having with the one he had in the 2021-22 NBA season when Davis was also absent for a time due to injury. The four-time NBA MVP, however, is not one to buy the similarities, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

Last season, James went on a similar tear starting with Davis' knee injury in December 2021 — reeling off 23 straight games with 25 points or more with comparable efficiency numbers. He doesn't see a correlation between the two stretches, however.

“Last year is last year,” James said. “Obviously, found a good groove last year. But this year is this year, as well. I feel really good in every facet of my game.”

LeBron James is coming off another sensational performance Monday night when he led the Lakers to a 121-115 road victory against the Charlotte Hornets, scoring 43 points on 16-for-26 shooting from the field with 11 rebounds and six assists in 40 minutes. Over his last five games, LeBron James has averaged 36.6 points on 58.5 percent shooting from the field, 8.6 rebounds, and 6.2 assists in 35.6 minutes per outing.

It is still uncertain when exactly Davis will return to active duty, but it's going to take a while. Until then, the Lakers will have to keep on counting on LeBron James to deliver MVP numbers to survive in the West.