LOS ANGELES — LeBron James was aghast at the suggestion that anything other than uncertainty could be used to define his status.
He'd just finished helping lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a win last week in New Orleans when a reporter asked him if he was "TBD" for the game the next night in San Antonio. He could've mentioned the nerve irritation that cost him the first 14 games of the season or the foot soreness that's been and will be an issue for him and his training staff.
He didn't. Instead, he went to the birth certificate for the facts determining whether he'd be ready to go against the Spurs.
"December 30th, 1984. 4:39 p.m.," he said in New Orleans. "That's when I was born."
Forty-one years and 14 days later, James played NBA basketball games on back-to-back nights for the first time this season, finishing one rebound shy of recording the oldest triple-double in league history. As much as you can "need" wins in the mi ddle of January, the Lakers needed Tuesday's 141-116 win over the Atlanta Hawks at home after a brick-filled clunker the night before in Sacramento.
Before the game, Lakers coach JJ Redick challenged his group to play unselfishly. By the end of the first quarter, James had six assists. He finished with 31 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists. He tomahawked dunks, sliced to the rim with a blend of power and grace and swished home catch-and-shoot 3s.
"Not stoppable," Jake LaRavia marveled.
Over his last 15 games, James is averaging 25.7 points on 54.4 percent shooting from the field. And over the last week, his defensive energy has started to move in the right direction, a sign the Lakers desperately needed to see.
When James eventually retires, a game like this won't register alongside his top performances. But for his coach and teammates, nights like Tuesday capture his greatness at this moment.
"I don't take for granted the LeBron stuff," Redick said. "It's actually unfortunate how much this guy puts into it and how much he cares and the way certain people talk about him. It's crazy. Come be around him every day and see how much this guy cares. It's off the charts."
He continued.
"It's the nature of envy. You're not going to get a click. You're not going to get a response by saying something nice about somebody, by acknowledging someone's greatness, by acknowledging how much they care and how much they work and how much they've accomplished and continue to accomplish and continue to go after something."
Forget that James played well. That he even played Tuesday was a bit of a surprise. Had he missed the second leg of the back-to-back against the Hawks, it would've guaranteed that he would be disqualified for year-end honors. If he had missed the game against Atlanta, the Lakers, already short-handed without Austin Reave s and now without backup center Jaxson Hayes because of a hamstring issue, would've needed to avoid a fourth-straight loss against a team that was in Los Angeles for the game before they were.
"(I) treated today, this morning, as a gameday for me as if I was playing, just to kind of see how my body will react," James said. "And got here at my normal time, kind of went through my full regimen and felt pretty good leading up to the game."
That regimen? Waking up Tuesday morning, then hopping into an ice bath. Then a hyperbaric chamber. Then a nap. Then some air compression treatment on his legs paired with some video game golf.
And then he left for work.
"Once I got here, I did my normal game day routine, activation, treatment, rehabbing, stretching, lifting, mentally, doing everything while I watched (TGL) on the TV," James said. "And then me and (trainer) Mike (Mancias) looked at each other. And he looked at me, asking me, 'What you thinking ?'
"I said, 'I think I feel pretty good.'"
James' energy, combined with the team's 19 made 3s Tuesday — a regression to the mean after Monday's 8-of-36 3-point showing against the Kings — helped the Lakers mostly cruise for one of their most dominant, energetic wins of the season. James at one point came up limping after getting kneed in the leg. He shook it off, grabbed a rebound and led the break on the following possession.
After the game, James said he was feeling the effects of 32 minutes and 35 seconds of NBA action on his 41-year-old muscles, tendons and bones. Undoubtedly, it'll be even worse Wednesday morning.
"It's a 'right now' problem," James said with a smile.
But the Lakers needed a win, they needed James to lead and they needed him to push his body. So he did.
"I would never disrespect the basketball gods when it comes to playing this game. So I put the time and the effort and the commitment in it, mentally, physically, spiritually," James said. "Every time I hit the floor or I'm at a practice, whatever the case may be, trying to set an example for my teammates and the younger generation that's watching me or watching throughout my career."
They saw the payoff on Tuesday, with James going to levels that haven't been reached by someone this deep into their NBA playing career.
"It's not ever gonna happen again," LaRavia said.
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