Dave McMenaminESPN Staff Writer7:46 PM ET5 Minute Read
LeBron emphasizes the importance of the next 23 games
LeBron James explains why the next 23 regular season games are so important.
SALT LAKE CITY — Twenty years into his announced stint in the NBA, LeBron James didn’t mince his words when asked about the upcoming challenge for the Los Angeles Lakers to earn a postseason spot.
“That’s 23 of the most important games of my career for a regular season,” James said Sunday before playing in a record-breaking 19th All-Star game. “That’s the kind of mindset I have and I hope the lads will have it when they come back from the break.”
After four NBA championships, ten trips to the Finals, and countless personal accomplishments, including his recent rise to top scorer of all-time, such an emphasis on this late stage might seem like an overstatement.
Explaining his stance, James revealed the urgency didn’t begin during the All-Star break, but rather at the end of last season when Los Angeles didn’t qualify for the postseason — just the fourth time in his first 19 seasons that his team had didn’t make it there.
“I want to give a push to get to the playoffs,” James said. “I don’t want to see that I’m not a part of the postseason for two years. It’s just not part of my DNA. We’re sitting up here and talking about it [scoring] Record and things like that and it’s all cool, but I’m more passionate about trying to make the postseason and give us a chance to fight for another Larry O’Brien Trophy. I just am. I’m cut off from that.”
And if the Lakers can qualify for the postseason, what then?
“I’ve always felt confident at every club I’ve been to that once we get to the playoffs we can take on anyone and I don’t feel any different now,” said James. “With the roster we have now, if we can end this regular season on the right foot, we can play anyone in the Western Conference, if not the whole league. … If we can redeem our ticket, we can compete against anyone.”
James, 38, is enjoying a strong individual season, averaging 30 points on 50.8% shooting, 8.4 rebounds and 7.0 assists. But Los Angeles has been fickle, taking a 27-32 record at the break and sitting 13th in the Western Conference — two games shy of the final play-in berth and 3½ games shy of the sixth seed guaranteeing the Lakers would get a place in the first round.
James has missed 14 games so far this season, including a three-game stretch recently with a left foot and ankle, but he plans to be on the court for the playoff pursuit as much as possible.
“I’m hoping I can find a way to make sure I’m available on the floor for those 23 games every night to give us a chance,” James said, speaking to reporters for the first time all weekend after he had been excused Saturday for private reasons. “Give our group a chance to compete every night and give us a chance to win every night so we give ourselves a chance to get into the postseason.”
James said the four days without a left foot since the Lakers’ 120-102 win over the New Orleans Pelicans before the break “helped not to have to emphasize it.” He vowed not to “go too crazy” in the All-Star Game so he’ll be as healthy as possible for Thursday’s Lakers next game against the Golden State Warriors, who are 2½ games ahead of LA in standings.
“The most important thing for me at the moment is to keep my health and to be there for my teammates after this break because we have to push hard if we want to achieve something special,” he said.
The Lakers looked pretty special in the Pelicans game when James first joined Los Angeles’ five new faces — D’Angelo Russell, Jarred Vanderbilt, Malik Beasley, Mo Bamba and Vom Reed. The Lakers clicked from the opening tip and offered a glimpse of what their new group may be capable of.
“I love what we’ve been able to achieve recently,” said James. “The worst thing for us is that we had to take a break. I would have loved if we played on Friday and got a few games on the table as it’s the first time our entire group has been together top to bottom.
“But it is what it is. We all take advantage of it. We all use the rest.”
Because it will start soon enough.
“It’s going to take a lot of commitment, which is fine,” James said. “That’s what it should be about. We are professionals. What else do we have to do? Make sure the family is okay when you leave home. You have people helping you around the house. Everything’s ok? that. Let’s get into that and move on from there.