Even though the Los Angeles Lakers got swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round, LeBron James showed that he can still compete at the highest level.
At 41 years of age, James averaged 23.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.8 assists while shooting 50% against the best defense in the league, leaving Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault very impressed.
“I said before the series, what he’s doing at this stage in his career is remarkable,” Daigneault said of James after Game 4. “Just the fact that he’s playing at this stage of his career is remarkable. The level he’s able to get to at this stage is unbelievable. He is a guy that similar to what I said about the team collectively, if you make a mistake on him, he’s going to make you pay for it. And it actually helps you improve. You’re a better team.
“He’s, like, developing your team because any crack, he’s going to find it. He’s not the only player. We’ve played against great players in a playoff series. They do that to you. They sharpen blades, but the fact that he can do it at this stage of his career, even the first five minutes of Game 1, was a great model for how you start a series.
“So I just have the deepest respect for him. Obviously his career speaks for itself. Being up close and competing against him was a privilege. Like I said, deep respect for him and the rest of the team.”
To help put into perspective how unique it is what James is doing at his age is the fact that he is two months older than Daigneault, who is in his sixth season as head coach of the Thunder.
It remains to be seen what’s next for James, but it’s cool to see him still garnering respect from his opponents after a playoff series.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander also impressed by LeBron James
Daigneault wasn’t the only member of the Thunder impressed by James, as reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was as well.
“Yeah, it was fun,” Gilgeous-Alexander said of competing against James. “It’s amazing what he’s doing out there at this age. It’s very impressive. It’s hard to put into words. He’s not very old in the grand scheme of life, but for the NBA it’s pretty old. It doesn’t seem like it out there.
“He was a force. He was the top of the scouting report all series. His size gave us issues at times, yeah he was impressive out there. I’m not sure we’ll see anything like that again, his longevity, his greatness for this long. It was super fun.”
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