The list of NBA players with the longevity Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has is scarce.
Despite turning 37 years old later in the month, James is coming off a 30-point performance in the win against the Boston Celtics. It marked his fourth game out of five eclipsing such a figure. That’s just not common for people his age.
The only outlier was his 23-point game in the loss to the L.A. Clippers where he shot 9-of-23 overall and 2-of-8 from long range. But that was also his first game back from COVID-19 protocols, which James said threw off his rhythm.
“I didn’t feel great going into that game because I was put into solitary confinement. So that was the main reason for that,” James said after the win against Boston.
He continued about how he shapes his mindset to not dwell on his age.
“For me, I don’t really believe in a lot of days in between, whatever the case may be. That’s just my mindset,” James said. “I don’t really get involved in how many minutes I play. I don’t confine to that. I think when you think negative thoughts, negative energy, it just creeps into your mind. I’m as young as I’ve ever been.”
Through 13 games, James is averaging 36.8 minutes a contest. Some overtime games augment that number, but it would mark his highest since the 2017-18 season when he averaged 36.9 minutes for the Cleveland Cavaliers. He played all 82 regular-season games that year.
The potential mileage on his legs is worrisome because the Lakers need him at his best if title No. 18 comes to fruition. That is also why L.A. acquired Russell Westbrook over the summer. But if there is anyone who could figure it out, it would be LeBron.
