Los Angeles — The NBA on Monday named LeBron James Western Conference Player of the Week for games played April 6–12, marking the Los Angeles Lakers forward’s 70th career selection, the most in league history.
James, 41, guided the Lakers to a 3-1 finish to the regular season while fellow stars Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves remained sidelined with injuries. Over the three victories he played, James averaged 24.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 9.7 assists.
He sat out the opening contest of the week, a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, then returned to lead Los Angeles to three consecutive wins:
- April 8 at Golden State: 26 points, eight rebounds, 11 assists, two steals and one block in a 119-103 road win.
- April 9 vs. Phoenix: 28 points, six rebounds, 12 assists and four steals on the second night of a back-to-back, during which he became the fourth player in NBA history to reach 12,000 regular-season assists.
- April 12 vs. Utah: 14 points, four rebounds, six assists and three steals in one half before resting the remainder of the game.
James did not appear after halftime in the 124-98 victory over the Jazz, slightly lowering his weekly averages.
The four-time MVP, who has spent much of this season as the Lakers’ third scoring option, resumed primary playmaking duties after the injuries to Doncic and Reaves. His 70 Player of the Week awards place him far ahead of Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant, who are tied for second with 33 each.
Looking ahead to the postseason, James expressed enthusiasm on his “Mind the Game” podcast. “The postseason is about to be, as the young kids will say, lit,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what you did in the regular season. It starts again—this is it. I’m excited, man, I can’t wait.”
Los Angeles opens the playoffs without a confirmed return date for Doncic and Reaves, leaving James to continue shouldering the primary load as the eighth-seeded Lakers chase another title.
Source: LakersNation.com
