LeBron James received one of his roughest first halves this season against the Detroit Pistons. The Los Angeles Lakers star went scoreless during the first two quarters. He and LA eventually took the 113-110 loss at Little Caesars Arena on Monday night.
James, however, showed no ill will towards the victors. He instead gave the host team its roses via Spectrum Sports.
“Of course, you give credit where credit is due. They're the No. 1 team in the East. I give a lot of credit to them,” James said. “We gave ourselves a chance. That's all you can ask for.”
Detroit's defensive plan frustrated James in the first two quarters. It's now the third time in his career James got held to a zero-point first half.
His head coach JJ Redick, however, didn't reflect on James' bad scoring night postgame.
“I thought he played a really unselfish game,” Redick said to reporters. “I thought he did a good job of not just trying to score, but make the right play like he always does and he gets 10 assists.”
Yes indeed, James played the role of facilitator. The four-time NBA champion even came close to a triple-double, pulling down nine rebounds and ending with 12 points.
Luka Doncic handled the scoring load for the visitors, ending with 32 points. Austin Reaves added 24 points to take second in scoring. Deandre Ayton added 13 points to place third on the Lakers.
James also became one of three defenders to block a shot. Although Jaxson Hayes led LA with four swats.
Los Angeles is now 46-26 overall following the loss to the Eastern Conference contender.
