On Tuesday night, LeBron James made his much-awaited season debut, marking the start of his 23rd campaign in the NBA — being the first player in NBA history to play that many seasons. And the Los Angeles Lakers could not have gotten off to a better start to the season with James in the lineup, as they went ahead and took a 140-125 victory over the Utah Jazz despite trailing by double-digits early.
James wasn't very involved in the scoring, with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves combining for 63 points (37 for the former, 26 for the latter) to lead the Lakers' offense. But he did put up 11 points, continuing his double-digit scoring streak and extending it to 1,293 games, and to top it all off, he dropped 12 assists (six in the fourth quarter alone) in an overall impressive season debut after missing the first 14 games with sciatica.
In so doing, James became the oldest player in NBA history to start his season with a double-double, as per Polymarket Hoops on X (formerly Twitter). The Lakers star continues to be unparalleled in terms of longevity, and he just seems to find a way to produce however he could even when he's clearly not yet 100 percent.
There were times where James lacked his usual burst when he attacked the basket. But the Lakers star more than made up for it with his incredible passing vision and pinpoint execution. He was the main reason why LA pulled ahead of Utah in the fourth quarter on Tuesday, and once he rounds into form, the league better watch out.
Lakers can afford to take it easy with LeBron James
In the past, having James on the mend for 14 games would have meant disaster. But now that the Lakers have Doncic on the roster, they have a legitimate ballhandling star who can score from everywhere on the court, helping negate James' absence.
The regular season is an 82-game grind, so there's no reason for the Lakers to push James hard this early. They can afford to bring him along slowly and have him ramp up in time for when the games matter the most.
