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LOS ANGELES – After recording over 40 minutes for the fourth time this month to see the Los Angeles Lakers lose 127-124 in overtime to the Washington Wizards on Monday night, LeBron James insisted he could manage the workload requested of him. him.
“I think this whole ‘LeBron needs more rest’ story or I should take more rest or I should take some time here, he’s gotten a lot bigger than he actually is,” James said. . “I never talked about it, I don’t talk about it, I don’t believe it. We all need more rest, s —. It’s a quick turnaround from last season, and we all wish we could have more rest but i’m here to work, i’m here to take in my stopwatch and be available for my teammates.
“And if I’m hurt or if I don’t feel well, then we can watch it. But I only have honest people [advising me], but I’m also honest with myself, and having a love for the game and being able to be available to my teammates is more important than anything. “
James played 43 minutes against the Wizards and had 31 points, 13 assists and nine rebounds, but admitted he wasn’t his best.
He played every minute and six second of the fourth quarter and overtime but one and scored 13 points, but he shot 6 for 13 in doing so (0 for 4 of 3) and made four of his eight turnovers. during this period. He also went 1-for-3 from the free throw line, including a failure on a and-1 attempt that would have put Los Angeles by one with 9.8 seconds left in the fourth quarter.
“Obviously, I take full responsibility [for] missed that free throw, “James said.” I have to do the free throw up there; it is an easy point for us. But we didn’t lose the game there. But I take this responsibility, of course, and I have to be better. “
During the first month and a half of this season, Lakers coach Frank Vogel was certainly better at handling the 18-year-old veteran’s minutes. Prior to February, James averaged 33.3 minutes per game – which ranked 43rd in the league and the least amount of playing time of his career, according to data compiled by ESPN Stats & Information.
As of the start of the month, however, James has averaged 38.2 minutes in 11 games – the most in the NBA – and Los Angeles is starting to struggle, having lost four of their last five games since Anthony Davis made his situation worse. Achilles tendinosis while suffering from calf strain in his right leg against the Denver Nuggets.
“I’m not pushing myself,” said James, 36, who has played all 32 Los Angeles games this season. “I wouldn’t say that. I go out and play the game. I do my job and try to do it at a high level, but it’s a story around the league.
“I’ve never asked for time off or time off throughout the season. And it’s growing to a point where it’s not even coming from me anymore. It’s just like, ‘OK, LeBron should take time off’ or ‘Why her workload on this?’ I’ve been hearing it for five, six, seven years now, and I’m still going strong. So I don’t need a document, I don’t look for a document; my job is to go out when I’m available, when I’m healthy to go out and play, and that’s what it is. “
James has never played this digest of a schedule, however only coming out of a 71-day offseason.
Vogel was asked if he had considered keeping James out of the roster in order to keep the Lakers captain cool, with a repeat title being the team’s ultimate goal.
“We’ve been looking at it all season with him. And we’ll be making these decisions game by game,” Vogel said.
Los Angeles goalie Alex Caruso compared the Lakers’ current slip – a three-game losing streak this season as Davis and point guard Dennis Schroder were missing – to the four-game slip that Los Angeles had about a third of last season. And Lakers center Montrezl Harrell said the team’s struggles would cause “a lot of soul-searching.”
As for James, the heart and soul of the defending champions, Vogel praised the work he does, even as the losses are starting to pile up.
“He’s a workaholic,” Vogel said. “He does all he can for us.”
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