Los Angeles Lakers: Teammates pushed LeBron James to strong 2nd half vs. Miami Heat
The Los Angeles Lakers picked up a hard-fought victory over the Miami Heat on Friday night. It extended their current winning streak to six games and pushed their road winning streak to 13 games.
Their only road loss this season came against the LA Clippers at the STAPLES Center, so the Lakers have not lost outside of the city of Los Angeles yet this season. However, that streak looked like it would come to an end against the Heat.
Miami came into the game with an undefeated 11-0 record at the AmericanAirlines Center, their homecourt. They are playing great basketball and looked like they would be well on their way to a 12th win after a strong first half.
The Heat led 59-51 at halftime as they were controlling things. A big reason for holding the lead was their performance against LeBron James.
James had easily his worst half of basketball in the first quarter quarters against the Heat. He shot a lousy 4-of-11 from the field and had an eye-popping seven turnovers. King James looked a step slow, not playing as his normally reactive self on the court.
With their leader struggling, Lakers teammates took things into their own hands to make sure James got back on track. Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins got on James at halftime to light a fire under him.
More from Lake Show Life
- Darvin Ham adds to Max Christie hype train after Lakers preseason opener
- Is LeBron James playing tonight? Latest Lakers vs Warriors update
- Can Darvin Ham put all of the Lakers puzzle pieces together?
- Lakers news: Darvin Ham knows his fifth starter, LeBron James and Rui Hachimura, Jalen Hood-Schifino praise
- Michael Malone’s painfully ironic comment has Lakers fans heated
"“My teammates got on my ass,” James told ESPN‘s Israel Gutierrez after the Lakers’ 113-110 victory. “They told me you’re playing too passive, thinking about the game way too much instead of read and reacting and doing what you do. … [Anthony Davis] got on me, Boogie Cousins got on me, and they told me to just be me. So I was like, ‘Thank God we have two halves in a basketball game,’ where I can flush the first one and then come back and try to help us win.”"
Davis and Cousins got the job done, as James came out in the second half as a changed player. He turned the ball over only once in the second half and scored 17 points to help the Lakers come from behind to win the game.
Los Angeles won the third quarter 37-26 to take the lead, which they were able to hold onto at the final buzzer. Despite the slow start, James nearly triple-doubled again, finishing with 28 points on 11-of-22 shooting with 12 assists, nine rebounds and one steal.
Davis had himself a game as well. He finished with a game-high 33 points to go with 10 rebounds, one assist and three blocks. It was his 11th double-double of the season and 13th time blocking at least three shots.
Next. 3 Lessons From Lakers Victory Over Heat. dark
The Lakers’ victory over the Heat was one of their most impressive ones of the season. They will put their length winning streaks on the line against the reeling Atlanta Hawks on Sunday.