Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James entered a class of his own after his triple-double on Tuesday night, but remains humble in his accomplishment and focused on team goals.
The Los Angeles Lakers have been rolling this season and a big reason for that is the play of LeBron James. After missing the playoffs in his first season in purple and gold, the first time that has occurred since his second season in the NBA, James came into the 2019-20 season motivated and rested.
James has been dominant for the Lakers, as he has looked locked in on both ends of the court. He has led the team in scoring six games, rebounding six times and assists in 13 out of 14 games. The King has five triple-doubles this season, but it was his most recent one that put him into the record books.
James is fifth in NBA history in triple-doubles with 86, trailing only Oscar Robertson, Russell Westbrook, Magic Johnson and Jason Kidd. However, the triple-double that he recorded against the Thunder on Tuesday night put him in a class of his own.
After Tuesday night’s performance, James has now recorded at least one triple-double against every team in the NBA. That is an incredible feat and one that deserves a lot of praise.
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Despite that, James didn’t make too big of a celebration about it. He even credited his teammates and coaches for helping him record all those triple-doubles.
"“I really don’t know what to think about it, to be honest. I’ve had some great teammates and great coaches that put me in position to be able to facilitate. My teammates have made shots for me throughout my career. Coaches have put me in position to be successful scoring the ball and I’ve just tried to read and react the ball off the rim as far as getting the rebounds,” James said.“And hopefully, throughout all those triple-doubles, I hope I got a winning record in those games cause that’s what’s most important. I really don’t know what to really think about it, I think it’s a pretty cool stat to know and I’m glad it happened in a win.”"
Despite accomplishing a personal goal that no one else has ever done in the NBA, James is still focused on the ultimate team goal, which is winning the game. This season, the Lakers are 4-1 in games that James records a triple-double in, with the only loss coming against the Toronto Raptors.
Personal goals are being put aside by James this season. Despite taking on a more pass-focused role in the offense, leading the league in assists at 11.1, the assist crown is not a goal of his.
Instead, James wants to be playing basketball into June again, helping lead the Lakers into the NBA Playoffs. If he continues performing at this level, Los Angeles is going to be difficult to stop.