Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors played the foil in the most notable bounceback of the career of King James. They were subjected to another performance by James on Saturday.
James scored a career-high 56 points as the Lakers overcame a 14-point deficit to win.
The Lakers snapped a four-game losing streak on Saturday in which James set a slew of records, but their play-in hopes are still in danger.
James said that the guys were following him off the floor and asked him how it felt to score 56. That was the first thing that came to my mind.
James was doused with water bottles by Stanley Johnson and Kent Bazemore while he was on the court. The team had a reason to celebrate.
When asked to describe the night, James said his effort as well as the Lakers were fueled by desperation, and that he was pleased to have it play out.
James said it was good to get a win in front of the fans.
The Lakers are in ninth place in the Western Conference with a record of 28-35. It kept them a game ahead of the New Orleans and Portland teams.
Los Angeles is dealing with the absence of Anthony Davis and is trying to figure it out, according to Lakers coach Frank Vogel.
James' output was another reminder of how little has changed in his hold on the league as his career nears the two-decade mark.
He made 19 of 31 shots from the field and 12 of 13 free throws while adding 10 rebound and three assists as he completed his masterpiece against the Warriors.
He became the oldest player in NBA history to score at least 55 points and 10 points in a game, joining Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Jamal Crawford as the only players to have done that.
His teams have won the past 11 games he has reached the 50-point mark, tied for the third-best such streak of all time, and he has reached the 50-point mark 13 times in his career, which is seventh all time.
James and Chamberlain are the only players in league history to score over 55 points for multiple teams. For the Warriors, Lakers, 76ers, and James has done it, too.
James discussed his frustration with his perceived lack of respect as a scorer in the latest episode of his roundtable barber chair discussion show.
James said on the show that when they talk about the best scorers of all time, they never mention his name.
Everyone was reminded of James' scoring prowess in the win. His season scoring average went up from 28.6 to 29.4 points per game, putting him in second place behind Philadelphia's Joel Embiid. It would be the second scoring title for James.
On the night he passed Karl Malone for the second-most minutes all time, he drew within a point of passing him for the second spot on the career scoring list.
James continued his dominance on the star. James said the NBA has changed since he came in as a freshman in 2003 -- first catering to centers posting up, then pass-and-cut sophisticated offenses, then pick-and-roll all the time and now, since Curry came along, it became 3-ball.
James went 6-for-11 from 3-point range on Saturday, while Curry was only 4-for-9.
James said that you have to be able to adjust if you want to get better with the team. I am not saying that I have changed my game. I want the game to fit any style of play or era. I feel like my game would fit in any era of basketball history from the time James Naismith created it.
As for the acknowledgement as an elite scorer that James believes is eluding him, his friend and current teammate, Carmelo Anthony, added some perspective.
Anthony said that he can't get everything.
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