LeBron James scores 9 points in short but scheduled pre-season debut with Lakers – San Bernardino Sun

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SAN DIEGO – LeBron James had to get approval from 14,000 fans no matter what he was doing.

It's the soundtrack that arose when he jogged in the arena for the first time; as he gave a subtle version of the chalk stroke that he has already made so iconic. The crowd gets up and sighs with disappointment when James's first shot – a rider at the rate of the base – takes off from the rim. Then they got up and applauded when he made a pointer less than three minutes into the match.

All this was familiar to a player who has been on a world stage for 15 years, but the night has been different than every other night for James, fans and a national audience: it's a Laker now.

"It's really different," he said, unintentionally, in the name of the world. "It will take a little while to get used to it."

The 33-year-old star played just 15 minutes, but his first half of nine points, four assists and three rebounds against the Denver Nuggets in the Valley View Casino Center's preliminary game marked the beginning of a new era for the biggest star of professional basketball. and his most prestigious franchise. The fact that the Lakers were beaten 124-107 had little consequence – in the pre-season, the results do not count, optimism always prevails over all the other impulses, and the fans who sold the arena got what they wanted.

The Lakers featured many of the features of the Promised Team: a fast-paced attacking group with ball machines that can climb the ladder. James accelerated to the rhythm of the Lakers. His newcomer, Rajon Rondo, had a promising performance with 11 assists in just 23 minutes – and his pass receivers, particularly Brandon Ingram (16 points) and JaVale McGee (17 points), were optimistic.

The most exciting baskets of the evening included speed as a key element, starting with Rondo's path to McGee in the first few seconds after the opening match.

"I like to stay lean, I like to sprint," McGee said. "I like to go up and down the floor. That's what I want in my game now, it's just being able to go up and down the floor and catch lobs and stay light.

But the team also noted some of the observers' concerns about the list since its construction: Defensively, the Lakers had a familiar inconsistency, with risky closures and communication errors on current switches during the pre-season. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Nuggets had practically put the game out of reach with an 18-point lead.

Many of these sections came against experimental "small balls" without a traditional center, according to a concept that coach Luke Walton experimented with for limited sections in practice. The Lakers are determined to keep trying during the preseason to see the potential for a reduced rotation.

"There were hard times there," he said. "But, as I said before, we will stick to it. We will not react excessively.

The Lakers had problems with fouls, totaling 31 for the match – in turn, the Nuggets had a score of 31 for 35 from the free throw line. Walton attributed this problem to changes of emphasis points that must be "adjusted".

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