MY ACCOUNT
LeBron James was adamant his approach to the NBA season will not be dictated by the Los Angeles Lakers’ results after they collapsed to a 139-130 loss to the Houston Rockets.
Despite James returning from a knee injury to register his fifth triple-double of the season, recording 23 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists, the Rockets stunned Los Angeles in overtime to continue the Lakers’ poor campaign.
The Lakers have now fallen to six losses in their past seven outings and sit ninth in the Western Conference, despite James averaging 29.4 points per game, the joint-second best record amongst NBA players.
Despite the team’s dire form, James said his approach to the final 17 games of the season will be influenced only by his fitness and not the strength of their postseason chances.
“I probably would be in uniform no matter what,” James said.
“No matter if we were nine games under .500 or nine games above .500. It’s just all dependent on how [the knee] feels.
“My love for the game and the way I play the game, and me suiting up, has nothing to do with records and things of that nature.
“That’s just not me.”
James had an opportunity to prevent overtime with the scores tied at 120-120, opting to pass to Carmelo Anthony rather than attempt a layup to win the game, but the 37-year-old did not regret his decision-making and felt he was unlucky on the night.
“I ended up behind the backboard,” said the four-time NBA MVP. “I was a little bit off-balance, and I could have forced a reverse layup, but I wasn’t in the position to feel like I could have got a great look. I feel like Melo’s look was a lot better than mine.
“I didn’t feel like I took any bad ones or any bad shots tonight. It just wasn’t falling for me.”
Meanwhile, team-mate Russell Westbrook, whose 30-point haul was not enough to halt the Lakers’ slump, said opposition teams are routinely raising their games.
“We kind of messed around with the game and they [the Rockets] had confidence throughout the night,” said the 33-year-old.
“They’re going to compete, they’re playing the Lakers.
“As you guys can see, when they play the Lakers, people get up for those games… It’s a thing for them.”
The Lakers will now travel to the Washington Wizards on Friday as they look to prevent their season from unravelling further.
