LA Lakers superstar forward LeBron James endured a rare off night during Monday’s 109-105 road loss to the Phoenix Suns. Amid James’ struggles, ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins noted that the aging four-time MVP started showing his age.
Despite being two months away from turning 40 and being the NBA’s oldest player, James sustained his All-Star-caliber play to begin the season. Over LA’s first three outings, all wins, he averaged 23.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, 7.3 assists and 2.3 3-pointers per game, shooting 51.0%.
However, James took a step back on Monday, tallying 11 points, five rebounds, eight assists and two triples, shooting only 3-for-14 (21.4%) across 36 minutes. Meanwhile, the Lakers blew an 18-point lead, suffering their first defeat as Suns superstars Devin Booker and Kevin Durant combined for 63 points.
During the matchup, Perkins took to X/Twitter and pointed out that James was playing like a soon-to-be 40-year-old.
“Bron actually looks like he’s about to turn 40. Worst game that I’ve seen from him in a very long time,” Perkins said.
James’ historic double-digit scoring streak appeared in jeopardy late in the contest. However, the 20-time All-Star drilled a 3 with 1:59 remaining, reaching 10-plus points for the 1,226th consecutive game.
Nevertheless, per StatMamba, James’ 21.4% shooting mark was his lowest since Oct. 31, 2007, when he shot 2-for-11 (18.2%) against the Dallas Mavericks.
LeBron James says Lakers need to “bounce back” from tough loss to Phoenix
During Monday’s postgame interview, LeBron James stressed the importance of LA not getting down after its frustrating loss to Phoenix.
“You’ve just gotta be able to bounce back, and not let the snowball turn into an avalanche when it comes to the loss column,” James said.
The four-time NBA champion added that the Lakers are still familiarizing themselves with rookie coach JJ Redick’s system and have plenty of room to grow.
“We’re in the process, we’re still getting to know our system, still getting to know each other out there on the floor, but we wanna be able to not let losses come in bunches,” James said.
(from 1:37 mark onwards)
James and LA (3-1) will attempt to get back on track on Wednesday when they continue their road trip against the undefeated Cleveland Cavaliers (4-0).
