LeBron James scored 15 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter, and the Los Angeles Lakers secured the last semifinal spot in the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament with a 106-103 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night.
Anthony Davis had 27 points and 15 rebounds and Austin Reaves scored 20 for the top-seeded Lakers, who will face New Orleans on Thursday in Las Vegas. Milwaukee plays Indiana in the East semifinal.

Two days after it was announced Bronny James had been cleared by doctors for a full return to basketball, and just four months after he suffered a cardiac arrest, the Southern California freshman took the floor for warmups with his teammates as they prepared to play No. 11 Gonzaga in the Las Vegas Invitational.

The son of NBA career scoring leader LeBron James was upbeat and jovial as he knocked down seven consecutive 3-pointers at one point during warmups, and then joined assistant coach Kurt Karis for an impromptu dance move on the sideline.

James ignited the crowd when he rose up and jammed home a one-handed dunk. And he reinforced that he's getting closer to making his collegiate debut.

James was expected to have a final evaluation with USC staff before resuming practice next week, a family spokesperson said in a statement. He'll be able to play in games “soon after,” the statement said.

LeBron James on his 360 layup late in the 2Q that led to a standing ovation inside Crypto.com Arena – and a technical foul because of his Christian Wood's celebration on the bench:

Two days after it was announced that Bronny James had been cleared by doctors for a full return to basketball, and just four months after he suffered a cardiac arrest, the USC freshman took the floor for warmups with his teammates as they prepared to play No. 11 Gonzaga in the Las Vegas Invitational.

The son of NBA career scoring leader LeBron James was upbeat and jovial as he knocked down seven consecutive 3-pointers at one point during warmups and then joined assistant coach Kurt Karis for an impromptu dance move on the sideline.

We all grown men. That b---- word ain’t cool, don’t use it so loosely," he was heard telling Udoka. "Don’t use that word so loosely. Nah, don’t use it so loosely, though. Don’t use it so loosely."

James joked about the interaction after the game.

"Thanksgiving… how much we enjoyed Thanksgiving," he said.

Udoka was cryptic about the conversation as well, saying, "We had some conversation and they didn't like what they heard."

LeBron James on what he and Ime Udoka were discussing to warrant double technical fouls tonight: “Thanksgiving.” And on the string of techs he’s been picking up - three in L.A.’s last five games: “It’s a wild season”

Thursday, the team pointed to its injuries as the reason why they’re tough to judge.

“I have no idea what we are,” LeBron James said. “How? We don't have a group yet. I know what some of us individually are, but as far as a team, we don't have our group yet. I don't know."

Anthony Davis had 31 points and 14 rebounds, James had 21 points, 12 rebounds and six assists, and D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves combined for 30 points, but the Lakers never consistently got stops against a team that played faster and harder.

“I thought we played really good ball [in] our first quarter,” James said. “But after that you could start seeing the three in four nights, the back-to-back, the bodies that we don't have start to wear on us, especially versus a young team like OKC."

They had moments Thursday, playing on the second night of a back-to-back.

Davis attacked Thunder rookie Chet Holmgren from the jump, Russell probed the defense and the Lakers built a double-digit lead.

But whether it was fatigue or the problems that have surfaced frequently throughout the year, the game violently flipped.

LeBron James added another record to his ever-growing NBA resume on Monday, passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most minutes played, postseason included, in the sport's history.

James officially passed Abdul-Jabbar in the first half of the Lakers' 138-94 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. Including his 29 minutes on Monday, James has now played 66,318 career minutes to Kareem's 66,297.

Again, that number includes the playoffs. The official record, as is the case with the all-time scoring record (which LeBron also owns after passing Kareem last season), only counts regular-season minutes.

On that list, James currently sits in third place with 54,664 minutes played including Monday night, trailing Karl Malone (54,852) and Abdul-Jabbar (57,446).

It's a museum filled with James' memorabilia from his 21-year NBA career, his time as a high school sensation at Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary's High School and the last apartment he and his mother lived in before he turned pro.

Anthony Davis scored 23 of his season-high 32 points in the second half and grabbed 13 rebounds, LeBron James had 22 points and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 121-115 on Saturday night.

James added six rebounds, six assists and two steals in beating Cleveland for the 18th time in 21 career games. The 39-year-old attended St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in nearby Akron and spent 11 seasons with the Cavaliers, leading them to the 2016 NBA championship.

LeBron on the opening of LeBron James’ Home Court, a museum featuring artifacts from his upbringing, with museum ticket sales going towards his LJFF charity: “I used to get on my mom about saving everything … and she kind of threw it back in my face (with the museum exhibits)”

The harsh demands of the NBA’s regular-season schedule looked like they caught up with the Lakers on Wednesday night.

Playing their third game in four nights and sixth in nine days, there was a notable energy and precision dropoff in their 104-101 home loss to the Dallas Mavericks compared to Tuesday’s In-Season Tournament victory over the Utah Jazz.

The defensive rebounding wasn’t crisp in the first three quarters (nine offensive rebounds allowed in the first 36 minutes). The shotmaking waned, including several missed layups.

They weren’t as effective with getting in the passing lanes and forcing turnovers as they had been over the past 1½ weeks – an area where the absence of Cam Reddish (left adductor soreness) was most felt.

Still, the Lakers, the league’s best fourth-quarter team entering Wednesday, did what they’ve done frequently this season: play their best basketball in the final frame.

The Lakers, who trailed 91-71 to begin the fourth quarter, erased their 20-point deficit when Austin Reaves hit a floater to tie the score at 99-all with less than two minutes remaining. One possession later, LeBron James tipped in a putback off Reaves’ missed floater to punctuate a 30-8 run and give the Lakers a 101-99 lead with 1:16 left – their first lead since 23-21 in the first quarter.

LeBron James scored his 39,000th point on the way to 17 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, and the Los Angeles Lakers completed an unbeaten run through group play in the NBA In-Season Tournament with a 131-99 victory over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday night.
Anthony Davis had 26 points and 16 rebounds for the Lakers, who are likely to host a quarterfinal game early next month to begin the knockout stages of the league's first in-season tournament. Los Angeles beat Phoenix, Memphis, Portland and Utah by a combined 74 points, capped by this blowout of the Jazz for the Lakers' sixth victory in seven games overall.

LeBron, in his 21st season, is :
✔️shooting a career best 58.6% from the field
✔️leading the league in 4th Q scoring average
✔️finding motivation through family and foe
“Sometimes you need to remind folks,” the 38 year old said after scoring 37

Austin Reaves on LeBron going off at 38: “I remind him every day that he’s old…He’s fighting Father Time better than anybody that’s played the game other than Tom Brady.

Darvin Ham details how the Lakers are managing Anthony Davis’ hip/adductor injury. Ham says it’s “just a matter of tolerance” for AD, for now

LeBron James on the Lakers’ 3-0 start in group play in the in-season tournament: “We know what’s at stake”

Anthony Davis (6 blocks) said he wasn’t thinking about the matchup with last season’s DPOY winner JJJ.

“I just go and compete. Protect the rim. Tell my guys to compete on the ball and funnel all the guys towards me. I’ll take care of the rest.”

The moments strung together, the Lakers suddenly looking like the basketball team they threatened to be when their names were written on paper this offseason.

LeBron James bounded agelessly to the basket. Anthony Davis swatted away shot after shot. D’Angelo Russell skipped and Austin Reaves cooked, the Lakers playing their best basketball of the season.

It helped, of course, that the ball decided it would finally start going into the basket Tuesday night.

For all the thought that goes into constructing an NBA team and the time devoted to scouting an opponent’s strengths and weakness, shooting is the biggest equalizer, the fuel that can take the .500 Lakers and make them look like one of the most dangerous teams in the league.

Los Angeles Lakers forward Cam Reddish, center, shoots as Portland Trail Blazers center Duop Reath, left and forward Jerami Grant defend during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
LAKERS

Hernández: Lakers hope ‘consistent opportunity’ for Cam Reddish is breakthrough they both need

Nov. 13, 2023
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The Lakers, who had made more than a dozen three-pointers only once this season, canned 22 Tuesday in their second in-season tournament game, blowing out the short-handed Grizzlies 134-107 at Crypto.com Arena.

But the other things — the defense, the rebounding, the passing, the energy and the effort — are the sustainable things the Lakers did well that can carry over.

The 22 makes from deep ties a franchise record and the Lakers have now won three straight.

Memphis, playing without suspended Ja Morant, lost guard Marcus Smart to an ankle injury early, but the Lakers never showed any signs of mercy.

Seven players scored in double figures, seven Lakers hit threes and the Lakers grabbed their first blowout of the season, making 58% from the field and 62.9% from three.

No team in NBA history had ever made 22 or more threes at such a high percentage until the La..

Anthony Davis had 30 points and 13 rebounds, Rui Hachimura scored eight of his 19 points in the final 3:43 and the Los Angeles Lakers overcame LeBron James' injury absence to beat the Portland Trail Blazers 116-110 on Sunday night.

James missed a game for the first time this season, sitting out because of a bruised left calf. The top scorer in NBA history injured his shin in a collision with Kevin Durant during the first quarter in Phoenix on Friday night.

Although James returned to that game, the Lakers decided to rest the 38-year-old star Sunday for their long haul ahead, including back-to-back games starting Tuesday night.