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NBA superstar LeBron James is gearing up for another playoff run, the 17th in his Hall-of-Fame career and fourth with the Los Angeles Lakers.
"The King" and the Lakers enter this year's postseason as the No. 7 seed, securing it by way of the Play-In Tournament with a 110-106 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday.
It earned them a first-round playoff showdown with the defending NBA champions and No. 2 seed Denver Nuggets in a rematch of last year's Westen Conference Finals.
Their series begins on Saturday in Denver, which LeBron James said is going to be another tough challenge for them.
Here's a look at the the 20-time All-Star's career record in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
LeBron James 1st Round NBA Playoffs Record: Appearances and games played
The 39-year-old is playing in the first round of the NBA playoffs for the 17th time in his 21 years in the league.
As per Land Of Basketball.com, he has played 79 first-round playoff games, with a 62-17 record for a winning percentage of 78.4%.
In his previous 16 trips in the playoffs, he only failed to advance past the first round once, in 2021, when the Lakers bowed to the Phoenix Suns, 4-2. On the other hand, he has helped his teams complete sweeps of their opponents on seven occasions.
He made his first-round playoff debut in 2006 as a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers against the Washington Wizards, where he averaged 35.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.3 steals and helped Cleveland win the series, 4-2.
LeBron James 1st Round NBA Playoffs Record: Total points
In the first-round playoff games he has played in his illustrious career, James has proven himself as an offensive force. So far, he has 2,249 points in 79 opening-round postseason games, for an average of 28.46 ppg, almost the same as his playoff career average.
His highest scoring average in the first round was in his maiden playoff appearance in 2006 with the Cavaliers.
James' second-highest was in 2018, in the final year of his second tour of duty in Cleveland, averaging 34.4 ppg in a seven-game hard-earned playoff series victory over the Indiana Pacers.
LeBron James prepares to lead Lakers against Denver Nuggets in first-round showdown
LeBron James knows that they are in for a tough challenge in the opening round of this year's playoffs against the defending NBA champions Denver Nuggets, but said he is prepared to lead the LA Lakers through it.
The Lakers have not had a lot of success against the Nuggets of late. They were swept in their three games this season and before that were swept by Denver in the Western Conference Finals last year.
While aware of the dominance exacted by the Nuggets on them, "The King" is not allowing it to consume and distract him from what needs to be done.
In a report that came out on the Lakers Nation website, he said:
"It shouldn't be personal at all. I think you allow yourself to get away from the game plan if you make it personal. We have a game plan, just go out there and execute it and you live with the results ... I just stay even-keeled."
For the season, James averaged 25.7 points, 8.3 assists, 7.3 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 71 games.
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