It seems a bit unfair to say LeBron James turned back the clock in the Los Angeles Lakers’ second consecutive victory over the Houston Rockets because he’s had multiple ridiculous performances this season that don’t seem possible for someone in their 23rd NBA season at 41 years old.
And one person who isn’t surprised by LeBron is Rockets star Kevin Durant, who has seen more than his fair share of unreal performances from the Lakers superstar. And even though everyone is anticipating the end of his career, Durant believes James can play another few years if he wants, via SportsCenter:
“Me? I think he can play until he’s 45 years old. I don’t know if he wanna be around that long, but I think he can play for another 4-5 more years, if I’m to be honest. It’s not a surprise anymore. His age, he is 41, but he looks great out there. I mean, when you love the game as much as he does you’ll do anything to stay locked in and stay on top of your game. So he’s very inspiring as a human being.”
James knocked down 13-of-14 shots from the field to finish with 30 points in the Lakers’ win as he was unstoppable in the paint. The idea of LeBron playing until he’s 45 years old seems a bit unreasonable, but at the rate he’s going it isn’t far-fetched to imagine him still being an effective player at that age.
Make no mistake, James can’t consistently carry an offense the way he could in his prime and he isn’t quite the athlete he once was. But even though he has lost a step, he’s still a better athlete than the majority of NBA players and his high IQ and vision are still among the best in the league. That has allowed him to take a step back in terms of his role on the Lakers as a primary creator, but still make an impact on a nightly basis.
James, Durant and Stephen Curry continue to carry the flag for the last generation of NBA players and all three are still amongst the best players in the league today. But what LeBron continues to do is just at another level.
LeBron James makes history in Lakers win over Rockets
James didn’t just have a great game for the Lakers in their win over the Rockets, he made history. LeBron became the oldest player ever to score at least 30 points on 90% shooting, breaking the previous record by almost five years.
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