Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James has seemingly defied logic with his incredible longevity and consistency as an NBA player. He has been an elite player in the league for more than two decades now.
It’s typical for professional athletes to see a dip in production as they age, yet James is nearing his 40th birthday and remains one of the league’s more impactful players.
It can’t be denied, however, that a recent stretch of play from James might’ve displayed his mortality. Across a six-game stretch, James was held under 20 points five times and had two performances where he was held to 12 points or fewer.
An anonymous individual who was formerly one of James’ assistant coaches spoke on the 20-time All-Star’s slump and called it “eye-opening.” The individual was seemingly referencing some of the games in question.
“He had that stretch where he looked probably as human as he’s never looked in his career,” the individual told ESPN. “It seems like he’s prolonged it more than anybody ever has, but at some point, he’s going to just reach a point where he can’t do it. And it seems like that day is getting closer and closer now. I don’t think it’s yet. I think that was just a rough stretch, but I think it is eye-opening to see it like, ‘Oh f—, he’s not God.’ He’s, at some point, going to not be able to do this anymore.”
Following his rough stretch, James did have a couple of strong performances, but he is now away from the team due to personal reasons.
It shouldn’t come as a shock that the Lakers haven’t done a lot of winning lately with James trying to find his footing. Los Angeles has won just three of its last 11 contests and has fallen all the way to the No. 10 seed in the Western Conference with a record of 13-12.
Without James, the Lakers lost their most recent game by 10 points to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Dec. 13. Los Angeles’ offense looked lifeless, as the team mustered just 87 points and shot 38.4 percent from the field and 28.6 percent from 3-point range.
If the Lakers want to avoid losing a second game in a row, they might need James to return to the lineup when the storied organization takes on the Memphis Grizzlies on Dec. 15. The Grizzlies have been hot lately, as their record of 9-1 over their past 10 contests ranks tops in the league.
