LeBron James Dominant; Lakers Fall to Nikola Jokic, Nuggets in Preseason Clash
The Denver Nuggets defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 113-111 in preseason action as LeBron James made his Staples Center debut in Southern California on Tuesday night.
James—who posted nine points in L.A.'s preseason opener Sunday night—finished with 13 points (5-of-6 shooting), three rebounds, three assists, two steals and four turnovers in 15 first-half minutes.
Rajon Rondo added 11 points and seven assists for the Lakers, while Nikola Jokic led Nuggets starters with 20 points, six rebounds and four assists in 23 minutes on a night when Gary Harris (hamstring) and Jamal Murray (ankle) both sat as a precaution.
LeBron James, Lakers Can Thrive by Pushing Pace
The last four years, James' Cleveland Cavaliers teams weren't all that keen on picking up the tempo.
To wit: During James' second run in Northeast Ohio, the Cavs played at the league's 20th-fastest pace, on average. They topped out at 12th in that category last season, but the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons saw Cleveland finish 25th and 28th, respectively, in that department, per Basketball Reference.
This year, it will be a big surprise if the Lakers don't finish in the top 10—and we saw why on Tuesday.
James and Co. were intent on running from the opening tip, and they did so to the tune of 17 fast-break points in the first half.
LeBron fueled several of those transition sprints as he scanned the floor for open finishers, and he even took matters into his own hands with a thunderous one-handed slam that brought the Staples Center crowd to its feet:
Given the composition of L.A.'s roster, the approach makes sense.
Unlike James' squad's in Cleveland, the Lakers have the young legs to burn opponents by embracing a more frenetic style. And with a handful of capable ball-handlers and distributors like James, Rondo, Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma and Josh Hart, L.A. is in the position where it can pivot to a grab-and-go approach more often than not.
"We have a very deep team, we have a lot of guys who can push the ball," head coach Luke Walton said last month, per SB Nation's Anthony Irwin. "We want to attack. We think a big strength of ours this year will be our depth and the amount of guys that we can throw at you. When you have that type of team, it’s a big advantage to push it down and make other teams play more possessions and play at a faster pace."
JaVale McGee Heading for Career Year Alongside LeBron
In a few months, JaVale McGee may very well look like one of the biggest bargains of the NBA offseason.
While eyebrows were raised when the Lakers inked McGee to a one-year, $2.4 million deal in July, it's clear the 30-year-old is in position to post the best numbers of his career in L.A.
Not only does McGee figure to garner starter's minutes in the middle of the Lakers' revamped offense, but he will be the beneficiary of playing alongside James and Rondo—two of the league's most gifted passers who combined to dole out 17.3 assists per game last season.
That much was evident over the Lakers' first two preseason games.
After racking up 17 points on 8-of-10 shooting Sunday night, McGee kept things rolling with 15 points (5-of-8 shooting), eight rebounds and five blocks Tuesday as he capitalized on easy finishes as a dive man:
McGee is also the kind of determined rim-runner who should excel in an uptempo scheme, slip behind defenses and capitalize on the attention paid to L.A.'s bevy of ball-handlers:
In other words, don't be stunned if McGee eclipses his previous career high of 11.3 points per game when the season draws to a close.
What's Next?
The Lakers will host the Sacramento Kings on Thursday before they head to Anaheim for a meeting with the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday. The Nuggets, meanwhile, will return home and take on the Perth Wildcats on Friday.
