"Luka doesn't have to adapt his game for me": LeBron James, after his best game of the year

The great scoring moment of LeBron James, backed by 30 points in Los Angeles Lakers' 111-103 victory over the Pelicans, once again challenges any logic about age in the NBA. However, after the game, James himself made it clear who holds the current hierarchy in LA with Luka Doncic as the leader.

“Luka doesn’t have to adapt his game for me,” explained James. “Luka is our franchise player at 26. He doesn’t need to change anything. It's us who have to adjust our game to him and find a way for it to work.”

The forward added that the team's offense revolves around the Slovenian. “We try to be dynamic and play through him. We know he's an incredible pick-and-roll player, a spectacular scorer. He attracts all the defensive attention, sometimes it seems like he has four or six eyes on him. It's up to us to position ourselves well. It's not a problem for me.”

Against New Orleans, Doncic also scored 30 points, marking the second time in the last three games where both exceeded that figure in the same match. The Lakers have won three consecutive games despite the absences of two starters, Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura, both with calf issues, with James and Doncic leading the way.

“He has been absolutely incredible,” said Doncic about his teammate. “He’s helping me a lot, helping everyone, being very efficient in shooting. That's Bron. He can do it all. I truly appreciate it. We are playing better together with each game, and it will only get better.”

After missing the first month of the season with sciatica, James averaged only 14 points in his first six games back, with low shooting percentages. Now, at 41, he's back in top form. In seven of the last 12 games, he has scored 25 points or more and, during the current winning streak, he averages 29 points shooting 58.8% from the field.

Against the Pelicans, he was crucial at the start of the final quarter, leading an 8-0 run that erased a seven-point deficit with two triples and an assist to Jarred Vanderbilt. Later, Doncic sealed the game with an offensive foul drawn and two late triples, one of them falling out of bounds as the buzzer sounded.

“We are trying to survive with the players we have,” James pointed out. “But it starts with me and Luka. Every time we step on the court, he will have the ball, and so will I. We have to put our teammates in the best possible position, offensively and defensively.”

Lakers coach, JJ Redick, compared James' current moment to that of a baseball legend. “It's like Greg Maddux towards the end of his career. He doesn’t always have his best repertoire every night, but he always has enough to win. I'm his catcher, and I have to know what pitches to call. Sometimes he tells me to go to hell and decides on his own, and that's fine too.”

JJ Redick's Words

Redick explained that his job involves adjusting James' usage from game to game. “I know LeBron, and I know everything he puts into this. It's a matter of recognizing what he's got each night, how he moves, how his shot feels. We even talk during games. ‘How's the three feeling? Okay, then I'll set up this play.’ It's a constant dialogue. What he's doing at 41, and what he did at 40, is greatness, albeit a different kind of greatness.”

This management makes even more sense when talking about his availability. Asked if he would play the second game of a back-to-back against the Spurs, James was clear: “Every back-to-back, from here on until the end of the season, is day by day. I'm 41, and I'm the player with the most minutes in NBA history. Keep that answer safe.”

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, "Luka no tiene que adaptar su juego por mí": LeBron James, tras su mejor partido del año