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LeBron James' three-season stint with the LA Lakers so far has seen them become perennial title contenders. The team had failed to make the playoffs for five straight seasons before James debuted for the franchise in 2018.
They looked good to qualify for the postseason in the four-time MVP's first campaign in LA. But James endured a long-term groin injury that ended the Purple and Gold's quest to qualify for the playoffs.
The LA Lakers acquired Anthony Davis, Danny Green and Dwight Howard in LeBron James' second season with the team in 2019-20. The Lakers ended up winning the NBA championship that year.
Despite the addition of the aforementioned veterans, LeBron James continues to be the driving force of the team, and has contributed with some solid individual outings in both the regular season and the playoffs.
He continued that formidable run in the 2020-21 NBA campaign as well, which did not go as planned for LeBron James and the LA Lakers, who lost to the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the playoffs.
On that note, here's a look at LeBron James' five highest-scoring games for the LA Lakers:
#5 40 points vs Miami Heat in 2020 NBA Finals
LeBron James' 40-point performance in Game 5 of the 2020 NBA Finals against the Miami Heat was his highest-scoring playoff game for the LA Lakers so far. The Lakers were trying to close the series out in Game 5 after taking a 3-1 lead, but the Miami Heat showed tremendous grit and character to keep the series alive.
It was a closely contested game, which could have gone either way. Danny Green missed an open-look three from the top of the key, which pretty much sealed the win for the Miami Heat in the dying seconds. The Heat won the game 111-108.
James put on a brilliant show, nonetheless, tallying a game-high 40 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists and three steals. He shot a staggering 15 of 21 from the field, including six of nine from the three-point line in that game.
#4 42 points vs San Antonio Spurs, 2018 regular season
LeBron James started his LA Lakers career with multiple 40-point games. The San Antonio Spurs were on the receiving end of one such outing from 'King James' in the 2018 regular season. James tallied 42 points, shooting 62.5% from the field, including 42.9% from the three-point line in that game.
The Spurs lost 113-121 on the night. James was up against some terrific scorers like DeMar DeRozan, Rudy Gay and LaMarcus Aldridge in that game, who were in great touch. DeRozan scored 32, Gay 31, while Aldridge tallied 21 points in that contest.
#3 44 points vs Portland Trail Blazers, 2018 regular season
Just before his 42-point game against the San Antonio Spurs in December 2018, LeBron James recorded a sensational 44-point outing against the Portland Trail Blazers in November.
It was a high-scoring game featuring the likes of Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, who were both in top form at the time.
James tallied 44 points, ten rebounds and nine assists on the night. He was in exquisite shooting form, converting 13 of 19 field goals and five of his six three-pointers. LeBron James led the Lakers to a 126-117 win in that game.
#2 46 points vs Cleveland Cavaliers, 2021 NBA regular-season
LeBron James has had most of his highest-scoring games for the LA Lakers against his former teams, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Miami Heat. The Cavs endured a difficult night against their former MVP in a regular-season game during the 2020-21 NBA campaign.
James torched them, tallying 46 points, shooting 19 of 26 from the floor and seven of 11 from the three-point line. He also had six assists, eight rebounds, two blocks and steals apiece on the night.
The rest of his teammates endured a fairly disappointing game, so LeBron's 46-point outing was key in the Lakers 115-108 win over the Cavs.
#1 51 points vs Miami Heat, 2018 NBA regular season
LeBron James did not take long to produce his first 50-point outing in an LA Lakers jersey. In his 16th appearance for the team, James tallied 51 points for the Purple and Gold against one of his former teams, the Miami Heat. James shot 61.3% from the field, and also made six of eight threes during the game.
The LA Lakers ended up winning that game 113-97. That outing from LeBron James set the tone for the team, as they produced plenty of winning performances before James got sidelined because of a groin injury.
That was also LeBron James' last 50-point outing in the NBA. But that has had a lot had to do with him playing as a creator rather than being a pure scorer for the team.
With Russell Westbrook in the squad next season, that could change, and there is a great chance that LeBron James could end up producing this kind of outings more frequently.
