LeBron James is an ageless wonder. The Los Angeles Lakers forward came up huge for his team in Game 4 of their first-round series against the Memphis Grizzlies at home Tuesday night, as he detonated for a monster stat line of 22 points and 20 rebounds in 45 minutes of all-around brilliance to lead the Purple & Gold to a 117-111 victory.
With that performance, LeBron James just became the first Lakers player since Shaquille O’Neal in 2004 to post a 20-20 double-double in a playoff game. At 38 years old, the four-time league MVP can still shred opponents in the playoffs and do it while stuffing the stat sheets with numbers players of his age shouldn’t even be posting in a game — let alone in a contest in the playoffs. That’s not to mention that it was LeBron James who forced overtime when he attacked the gut of the Grizzlies’ defense for a layup to tie the game up at 104-104 with just under a second left in regulation.
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LeBron James, who shot 8-for-18 from the field and 5-for-7 from the foul line, also added seven assists and two blocks. With Anthony Davis struggling on offense, the future Hall of Famer stepped up and joined hands with the likes of Austin Reaves, D’Angelo Russell, and Dennis Schroder to carry most of the load on that end of the court for the Lakers. Davis finished with a double-double of his own of 12 points to go with 11 boards, two steals, and four blocks, but he shot just 4-for-13 from the field in 42 minutes of floor duty.
LeBron James and the Lakers can finish of the Grizzlies in Game 5 on Wednesday in Memphis.
