Coming into the Los Angeles Lakers’ game against the Atlanta Hawks, both LeBron James and Luka Doncic were being listed as questionable. It would have been fair for anyone to assume that James would be sitting out as he had yet to play both legs of a back-to-back this season.
However, not only did LeBron suit up against the Hawks, he had one of his best games of the season as he finished with 31 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists in the Lakers’ 25-point blowout victory. As for how he and the Lakers decided he would play, James just treated it like a normal day.
“I was just going about my day,” LeBron said after the win. “I treated today, this morning, as a game day for me, if I was playing, just to kind of see how my body would react. Got here my normal time, kind of went through my full regimen and felt pretty good leading up to the game, so I decided to go.”
James would then go into more detail about what constitutes his game day routine.
“I woke up, I got in the cold tub, I got in the hyperbaric chamber,” LeBron noted. “After the hyperbaric chamber, I took a nap. Then I played PGA EA Golf for a little bit, as I normally rest my legs for 45 minutes. Then I took a shower, got dressed, and headed here.
“And once I got here, I did my normal game day routine, activation, treatment, rehabbing, stretching, lifting, mentally doing everything. Meanwhile, I watched TPG on the TV. And then me and Mike (Mancias) looked at each other, and he looked at me and asked me, ‘What are you thinking?’ And I said, ‘I think I feel pretty good.’ And it was a pre-game meal in between.”
James’ pregame routine got him where he needed to be on this night as he nearly notched his first triple-double of the season. And with the rough stretch the Lakers have coming, LeBron’s ability to perform at this level will be even more necessary as they try and survive and even thrive on this upcoming road trip.
Lakers’ LeBron James makes it clear he and Austin Reaves have no issues
Prior to this game, there was potentially a bit of controversy brewing as James’ agent, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, made a comment on his podcast suggesting the Lakers trade Austin Reaves. This led many to wonder whether moving Reaves was a thought that LeBron himself shared, but the Lakers superstar made it clear that Paul’s thoughts are his own and that he and Reaves are good.
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