LeBron James is always a talking point when it comes to the NBA, and for good reason. He’s the NBA’s longest-tenured player in history, playing from age 18 to his 40s, and has broken records most athletes won’t ever touch. However, many suspect that his time on the court is coming to an end, and his most recent game in Cleveland may very well be his last.
On Jan. 28th, the Los Angeles Lakers (28-18) faced the Cleveland Cavaliers (29-20) at home. The Cavs wore their throwback jerseys modeling the 2003-2010 era, the jersey that Lebron actually debuted when he was just beginning his career. After a crowd-moving tribute video to LeBron that brought many fans and James to tears, the game was underway.
Donovan Mitchell and Jaylon Tyson were leading scorers for the Cavs, scoring 25 and 20 respectively. Both were also strong in rebounds and assists, continuing to be dominant leaders with three starters sitting out with injury.
While L.A. struggled from the 3-point line, the Cavaliers soared. Eight of the ten Cleveland players with shots from outside the arc scored, while the Lakers had eight players who missed on all their attempts.
For the Lakers, Luka Doncic went 12-20 from the field scoring 29 points. Despite playing for 27 minutes, James went 3-10 and missed all three of his 3-point attempts, ending the night with 11 points.
With the crowd chanting for Bronny James (LeBron James’ son) to be put in the game, he ended up playing eight minutes and scoring 8 points, only three points less than his father who had over three times as many minutes.
The Lakers outscored the Cavs in the first quarter 28-24, but after that, the Cavs took ownership of their home court. In the third quarter, the Cavs outscored the Lakers by 20 points, leading them to a 30 point victory, 129-99. It was the Cavs’ fifth straight win, demonstrating the upward shift they are starting to make as they pass the mid-way point in the season.
During Mitchell’s post-game interview with ESPN, Tyson walked over while the reporter was talking about James and his Cleveland legacy. Tyson jumped in saying Cleveland is “Donovan Mitchell’s city now,” which caused some backlash from passionate fans.
He later apologized for his comment, saying he did not intend for his words to insult James and his success, especially since Tyson grew up loving the Cavs because of him. Tyson instead wanted to “give Don his flowers” for what he has done for this Cavaliers team.
Both Evan Mobley (calf) and Darius Garland (toe) were out for the Lakers’ game, along with Max Strus, who has yet to play this season. All three were regular starters in the 2024-2025 season but have not had the chance to share the floor since. Mobley and Garland should return soon, and Strus, while he’s been battling a foot injury since the start of the season, is thought to be recovering well and may also return soon. His last injury update from the Cavaliers medical team was in the first week of January, where they said he would be out for at least four additional weeks.
The Cavs could use their starters back as soon as possible, as they find themselves in a heated race for playoff seeding in the East. The current two through five seeded teams are all within just a couple games of each other.
