LOS ANGELES — After returning Sunday in the Los Angeles Lakers‘ 116-100 win over the Memphis Grizzlies following an eight-day layoff, LeBron James said he had to be convinced to take time away from the team to address his sore left foot.
“If it was up to just me, I probably would’ve played,” said James, who came into the season stating his goal to play in all 82 games in his 22nd year in the NBA. “It would’ve been hard to keep me away from it. I have a team and I got to listen to them as well. They look out for my best interest.”
Lakers coach JJ Redick said James’ absence was for personal reasons and gave the star space during the time he missed — telling reporters he was unaware of how the league’s all-time leading scorer spent the week-long break.
James shed some clarity on the situation after putting up 18 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists and 2 blocks in 34 minutes against the Grizzlies.
“A lot of rehabbing, a lot of training still to make sure that I was ready to go tonight,” James said. “Didn’t want to get too much out of shape.”
By failing to advance to Las Vegas and defend their NBA Cup championship, the Lakers’ schedule had just two games during a 10-day stretch from Dec. 9-18, allowing James to prioritize his health without missing too much game action.
“I had an opportunity to take more days and get my mind, body and everything where I wanted it to be for tonight,” he said. “And it worked out.”
The payoff was almost immediate, with James throwing down a dunk on one end, sprinting back to block Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke‘s shot from behind on the other and then scoring on a tip-in on the ensuing possession all in the span of 19 seconds in the first quarter.
“Had some energy, which kind of brought energy to us,” said Anthony Davis, who tied season highs with 40 points and 16 rebounds, playing through a stinger injury to his left shoulder. “He’s obviously dealing with some stuff. But I think a week off kind of just let him heal and get back right.”
Beyond the initial surge, Redick said James’ defensive communication was a constant buoy for his team as L.A. held a Memphis team that came into the night having won 10 of its last 11 games to just 39.2% from the field (32.1% from 3) and forced 21 turnovers.
“He’s the best on our team with his attention to detail and shifts,” Redick said. “An important part of us having a good team defense is his talk and his effort level on that.”
On the season, James was averaging 23 points on 49.5% shooting (35.9% from 3), 9.1 assists and 8.0 rebounds before Sunday’s game. Redick has said he is in constant communication with James and his longtime athletic trainer, Mike Mancias, about managing the four-time MVP’s workload as he nears his 40th birthday at the end of the month.
Moving forward, Redick said he will try to find pockets of rest for James without him needing to miss entire games.
“Not necessarily less minutes, but shorter runs so that he’s not getting gassed and then quicker segments on the bench and then he’s back in,” Redick said.
James said his left foot soreness remains “an everyday thing,” adding: “It’s not behind me.”
However, he said the extended rest did allow him to recover from quad injury he suffered in the last game he played — L.A.’s 134-132 overtime loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Dec. 6.
His return coincided with Redick trying out a new starting lineup for the first time this season, with Max Christie joining James, Davis, Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura in the first unit. Reaves had 19 points, 8 assists and 2 steals while Christie was instrumental in holding Grizzlies star Ja Morant to a 6-for-21 shooting line with 7 turnovers.
“My main assignment tonight was Ja Morant, so my mind was just focused on trying to make it as tough as I could for him,” Christie said. “And I thought I did a decent job of that tonight.”
