Per ESPN, LeBron James just broke an unofficial record that no one had ever talked about prior to tonight: James has now scored more points in the regular season and playoffs combined than anyone in pro basketball history. I cannot recall hearing anyone ever speak about this "record" before tonight, but congratulations to James for breaking a record that is not in any record book. As a side note--and it is a side note for James--James' L.A. Lakers lost 117-115 to the Golden State Warriors. James' plus/minus number of -11 was the worst for any Laker as James fired up a game-high 27 field goal attempts while making just nine. James scored 26 points, he had a game-high 15 rebounds, and he tied Stephen Curry for game-high honors with eight assists. What does all of this mean? James is an incredibly talented basketball player who is posting gaudy box score statistics as a 37 year old--and James is laser focused on becoming the all-time regular season career scoring leader (which is an actual record, not a record made up tonight by ESPN).
James is attacking the hoop less than ever, averaging a career-low 5.6 free throw attempts per game, and he is shooting more three pointers than ever, averaging a career-high 7.8 three point attempts per game, 1.5 more than he has ever averaged before. Overall, James is averaging 21.0 field goal attempts per game, his highest number since 2007-08 when he won the scoring title. The fairy tale that James is doing everything that he can to help the Lakers win and that he does not care at all about the career regular season scoring record is hilarious but implausible.
I am not opposed to James chasing the scoring record; it is natural and understandable that he wants to break the sport's most prestigious record, a mark currently held by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and previously held by Wilt Chamberlain. I just reject the media narratives that James is a pass-first player and that James is always focused on team success more so than aggrandizing himself. Contrary to those narratives, James has always been a great scorer, and his scoring is an asset for his team when he attacks the hoop; also, James has always known how to manipulate his numbers (and influence media members who value having access to him) to support the narrative that he is doing all that he can do to help his team win. Who can blame a loss on a player who put up 26-15-8? James' talent is undeniable, but if you watched the Warriors-Lakers game with understanding then you know the difference between playing to win, and playing to accumulate statistics; that is not even to say that James played poorly--but it is to say that James could have increased the Lakers' win probability by attacking the hoop more often, and by encouraging Davis (who admires James) to attack the hoop more often as well.
A lot of nonsense is said and written about the Lakers' offense, but even with James misfiring from all angles the Lakers scored 115 points while shooting .466 from the field and .407 from three point range. The Lakers had just eight turnovers, four of which James committed. No, offense is not and has not been the problem. The problems are defense and rebounding. When you score 115 points on the road you should win, but the Lakers lost because of their leaky defense and their subpar rebounding; the smaller Warriors outrebounded the Lakers, 50-47.
According to the box score, Anthony Davis played 35 minutes, but he was invisible for long stretches, finishing with 16 points, seven rebounds, and four assists while shooting 5-13 from the field. Two years ago, he fulfilled his dream of winning a title while playing alongside LeBron James, and no one can be sure when Davis will play hard again.
It will be difficult to pin this loss on Russell Westbrook, but I am sure that media members will find a way to discredit Westbrook's 19 points on 7-13 field goal shooting, seven rebounds, five assists, and one turnover with a +2 plus/minus number (best among Laker starters).
Stephen Curry, widely recognized as the most powerful gravitational force in our solar system other than the sun, scored 24 points while shooting 7-17 from the field (including 1-8 from three point range). The star of the game was Klay Thompson, who scored a game-high 33 points on 12-22 field goal shooting, including 5-9 from behind the arc. Thompson poured in 16 points in the fourth quarter.
The Warriors are a deep and talented team that will be even deeper and more talented after the injured Draymond Green returns from injury. The Lakers are a top-heavy team whose best player has written off this season from a team standpoint; James recently said publicly that the Lakers are not on the same level as the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks and that the Lakers as presently constructed cannot reach that level. What James did not say--but his actions speak loudly--is that he is going to chase the career scoring record with all of his might while figuring out how to make sure that he is not blamed for the Lakers falling short of preseason expectations.
How good would the Lakers be if James consistently played defense, if he consistently attacked the hoop on offense, and if he figured out how to bring out the best in his teammates as opposed to viewing them as the cheering section for his record-chasing? How good would the Lakers be if Davis consistently played defense, if he did not act like he is fatally allergic to posting up, and if he showed even the slightest interest in dominating smaller, less talented players?
It is sad that it appears we will never find out the answers to those questions, because James and Davis are determined to not play hard enough and smart enough to provide those answers.