James went for 35 points, the most ever by a player in their 21st season
Another night, another history-making performance for LeBron James. The Los Angeles Lakers’ legendary forward poured in 35 points in a 130-125 overtime win over the Los Angeles Clippers to surpass Karl Malone for the most 30-point games in NBA history after turning 35 years old with 81. He also set the record for the most points in a game by a player in their 21st season, besting Dirk Nowitzki’s 30 in 2019.
James added 11 rebounds and seven assists, and shot a highly-efficient 13-of-19 from the field as the Lakers snapped their 11-game losing streak to the Clippers and improved to 3-2 on the season.
“I work on my body every day, I work on my mind every day to be able to be available to my teammates,” James said. “This was three in four nights for us and we were short bodies. No Rui [Hachimura], late scratch for Taurean Prince, no Gabe Vincent, been without [Jarred Vanderbilt] for the season so far, and everybody had to step up in their absence. Big win for us, and I’m happy I was able to contribute a little bit.”
James saved his best for last, as he scored or assisted on 21 of the Lakers’ 30 points in the fourth quarter. That should have been enough to get the Lakers the win in regulation, but they made some crucial mistakes down the stretch, and the Clippers made some clutch shots and free throws to force overtime.
The 38-year-old still had plenty of energy in the extra frame, as he sprinted the floor to throw down a thunderous alley-oop off the feed from Austin Reaves.
Perhaps the only concerning aspect of James’ performance is that he ended up playing a season-high 42 minutes to secure the win. James was limited to 29 minutes on opening night when the Lakers lost to the Denver Nuggets, which Darvin Ham said “in all likelihood” would be the trend for the season. James added, “you always want to be on the floor. I guess there’s a system in place, and I’m going to follow it.”
Since then, James has averaged 37.3 minutes per game, which would rank fifth among all players. That is obviously not sustainable for a players in his 21st season, but the Lakers have needed James on the floor that much just to get to 3-2. How they manage his workload over the course of the season will be interesting to watch.
