LeBron James’ first back-to-back games since turning 40 will wrap up on Friday when the Los Angeles Lakers host the Atlanta Hawks.
In Thursday’s 114-106 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, James showed he is up for the challenge, scoring 38 points and tying Michael Jordan for the most 30-point games in NBA history with 562.
Adding to the difficulty, star player Anthony Davis was absent due to a sprained left ankle. Davis, who injured the ankle on Christmas Day against the Golden State Warriors, might return as soon as Friday.
James started the first of two games in two days with strong energy.
“You have a guy out who is averaging 25-plus points, with rebounds and blocks, A.D. is our No. 1, No. 2 option so when he’s out, you have to go step up your game, including myself,” James said. “I think everybody pitched in on that end.”
James made a season-high seven 3-pointers out of 10 attempts, his third most this season.
“I like when he’s a willing 3-point shooter,” Lakers head coach JJ Redick said. “We want him aggressive (and) shot ready from three as much as we want him to get downhill and put pressure on the rim.”
Max Christie also played a key role, scoring a career-high 28 points and making 5 of 9 3-pointers. Austin Reaves stepped up in his bigger offensive role, adding 11 assists and 15 points.
Christie will be important again on Friday, especially in defense as he helps guard Trae Young of the Hawks. Despite Young’s scoring average of 22.3 points per game being the lowest since his rookie season, he has surpassed that average in six of his last seven games.
Young recently scored 30 points in a 139-120 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday. De’Andre Hunter added 20 points off the bench as the Hawks’ four-game winning streak ended. Atlanta struggled with 3-point shooting, making only 16 of 46 attempts (34.8%).
The Hawks were missing Bogdan Bogdanovic (leg contusion) and Jalen Johnson (shoulder soreness), leaving two key scorers sidelined. However, it was their lack of urgency in transition defense that hurt them the most.
“You’re always going to have players out,” Hawks head coach Quin Snyder said, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Obviously, Jalen’s a good player but really, if we would have had urgency in (defensive) transition, anyone can do that. That was where we weren’t urgent out of the gate.”
Friday’s game is Atlanta’s third of a six-game road trip. It will be a rematch of the December 6 game, when the Lakers won 134-132 in overtime. In that game, Young had 31 points and 20 assists, while James posted a triple-double with 39 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds.
