LaBron James celebrated his 21st. consecutive NBA All-Star designation with 20 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a comfortable 117-96 victory over the Boston Celtics Thursday night, in a new edition of the greatest basketball rivalry.
The first duel of the season between the two most winning and prestigious franchises in the NBA was actually an uneven game without much suspense in the Crypto Arena. The Lakers started quickly and built a considerable lead based on a magnificent first half, especially with solid defense and a barrage of three-pointers.
A violent dunk by James was part of that first half totally dominated by the home team.
Down by 19 points at halftime, The Celtics threatened with a reaction in the third period, approaching 12 points on multiple occasionsbut they never put real pressure. This time they did not present their best version, they lacked energy and shot very poorly from long distance (14 of 41 in triples).
LeBron James extended his record of calls to the All-Star Games
The Lakers (24-18) cooled down the game in the final period with consecutive mid-range baskets from a cool LeBron James, who hours before had added a little more history to his record by being named in the Western Conference starting five for the NBA All-Star Game along with Stephen Curry, Nikola Jokic, Kevin Durant and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
James, 40, had already set the record for appearances in All-Star Games the previous season with his number 20 to surpass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Tatum and Brown were off for the Celtics
Anthony Davis led Los Angeles with 24 points and Austin Reaves had 23. The Lakers made 15 of 35 3-point attempts, 11 of them in the first half. The lead was so big in the fourth quarter that even Bronny James came in to play a few minutes (0 points).
For Boston (31-14), Kristaps Porzingis scored 22, but the star duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined for just 33 points (12 of 31) before leaving the court early.
The Lakers will now go on the road for six games and When they return to LA on February 6 they could have new faces on the roster. That day will be the deadline for trades in the NBA and the Lakers are expected to make moves to add at least one big man to help free Davis from center duties.
Keep reading:
– Lakers and other Los Angeles clubs donate $8 million for fire victims
– LeBron James becomes the player with the most 30-point games in NBA history
– Lakers coach JJ Redick loses his home in the devastating Palisades fire