Game 1 of 82 for the Los Angeles Lakers was a bit… odd, to say the least. The team was completely shellacked by the defending champions Denver Nuggets, but that wasn't the weird part. No, the weird part was that LeBron James, arguably the greatest player of all time, played only 29 minutes.

That's not even three quarters of play! The Lakers, in a game that they were trailing and had to claw their way back, played LeBron just 29 minutes. Taurean Prince played more minutes than LeBron! Obviously, fans were upset with the decision to apparently “bench” LeBron. After the game, though, the Lakers fanbase got an explanation, at least.

Darvin Ham apparently has LeBron James on a bit of a minutes restriction. This was confirmed by Ham himself after their loss to the Nuggets.  LeBron also seemed to agree with this, saying that this was a thing that they planned before the game even started, per Michael Corvo”.

“Darvin Ham disclosed that, “in all likelihood”, LeBron will play about 30 minutes per game this season, which would be a career-low (by far) for the four-time MVP. “It's going to be a day-by-day process, gauging how he's feeling, get communication from him, our training staff, our medical staff,” said Ham.”

LeBron if he's upset or surprised by his minutes: “Nah, I’m not surprised. I already talked to Coach. We had a game plan going into game one. Not surprised or upset.”

The 30 minutes per game threshold was quickly broken in Game 2, though. Against the Suns, LeBron James played 35 minutes for the Lakers. That is much more in line with his usual workload. LeBron delivered big-time, scoring 21 points with eight rebounds and nine assists. Without him, the Lakers would've likely fallen.

The Lakers' minutes restriction on LeBron James is pointless

It's easy to see why the Lakers want to put LeBron James on a minutes restriction. LeBron isn't the same injury-immune play that he once was in his prime. At 38 years old, injuries have started to slow down his abilities on the court. He has missed significant time in the last few seasons due to various injury.

Those injuries arguably cost the Lakers a chance at the title last season. LeBron suffered a foot injury towards the end of the regular season, and he was clearly not 100% throughout the series. There were flashes of his brilliance, but oftentimes LeBron did not look like his regular self. The Lakers want to minimize the risk of LeBron injuring himself.

However, there's a couple of reasons why this minutes restriction is pointless. For one… every team's goal in the regular season is to win games to qualify for the playoffs. “Load managing” for the playoffs could backfire, as you sabotage your team's chances of winning. After all, you put your best player on the bench for longer. In your quest to keep your stars “fresh”… you might end up missing your goal entirely.

The second reason is that the Lakers need LeBron more than ever. There was hope after the playoffs last season that the team could lean on Austin Reaves more to create. Reaves made a name for himself as a solid on-ball creator, with him even calling off LeBron at times in the playoffs. Reaves, along with Anthony Davis, should be the ones carrying LeBron now. However, the harsh reality that the Lakers are facing is that a healthy LeBron is still their best chance at winning.

In the Lakers' loss to the Nuggets, LeBron was a +7 when he was on the court. When he was off, there was a -14 dropoff. His impact was clearly felt throughout the game. In their last win over the Suns, despite a less efficient shooting clip, LeBron was a +22. That alone speaks to how immense his impact is on the team. Meanwhile, Davis and Reaves have been pedestrian at best while, with Davis even disappearing during their loss to the Nuggets.

When he's healthy, LeBron is the ultimate equalizer. Even at his advanced age, his ability to get to the rim and create for himself and his teammates is unparalleled. There's a reason why he garnered such a big +/- in his first two games: he changes the complexion of the game for the Lakers. Davis and Reaves can't do that

Like it or not, this is still LeBron's team to run. The Lakers may want LeBron to take a backseat for the playoffs, but the truth is that the team won't be winning a lot of games if LeBron doesn't play. LA will need to find other ways to preserve LeBron for the playoffs.