LeBron James made it clear the priority Saturday night was simple after the Los Angeles Lakers’ 129-101 victory over the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center.
“You just said it. Just needed to get a win, get back on the right front and I think we did it tonight,” James said postgame.
The Lakers entered the night having dropped three straight, including two at home, and responded with one of their most complete performances of the season.
“It’s been a while since we had like a 48-minute game,” he said. “We was able to sustain the effort and at the start we just came in with the right mindset. Obviously the last three, dropping the last three, last two at home and then the Phoenix game was a tough one. So we just came in with the right mindset and understand the assignment. We took care of business.”
The four-time champion finished with 22 points, nine assists and seven rebounds on 7-of-13 shooting, including 4-of-6 from 3-point range, as Los Angeles improved to 35-24.
Asked about selflessness, the 22-time All-Star pointed to both ends of the floor.
“That should be the mentality every night,” he said. “We want to get everybody involved. We want to have the ball moving, the ball popping. But I thought defensively we was connected as well. That definitely contributed to our offense and that helped a lot.”
The Lakers knocked down 19 three-pointers and assisted on 29 of 48 field goals, numbers that reflected the approach.
“It’s easy to say when the ball goes in,” James said. “You can talk about the numbers, but I just think mentally we knew what we was against. We knew how we lost these last three games and they just didn’t sit well with us. We just came out and we executed.”
James also addressed his recent shooting stretch from deep, which had dipped over the previous 10 games.
“I’m comfortable in every shot I take,” he said. “I can shoot 0.0% from the three-point line. I believe I’ll make the next one. I’ve been playing ball my whole life, so not much of a numbers guy to be honest.”
He credited Luke Kennard, who scored 16 points off the bench, for adding another dimension.
“It gives us another scoring threat,” James said. “His ability to get into the lane and make plays for others as well has been a big part of what we want to do too. Just making that extra pass, those kick-out plays and those extra ones. He’s damn good at it.”
Before tipoff, James shared the court with his 11-year-old daughter Zhuri during warmups and later walked off hand-in-hand with her.
“I miss a lot of moments spending time with my kids because of my career,” he said. “Anytime I get moments with them, it’s always special for me.”
On having his daughter on her first true road trip, he added: “It’s special. It’s definitely softened me up over the last 11 years. It’s a different type of love.”
