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LeBron James tallied 37 points and 13 rebounds, but the 36-year-old's double-double couldn't stop the LA Lakers from crashing to their sixth loss in seven games on Wednesday night. The Lakers lost 99-104 to the Memphis Grizzlies despite leading by as many as 14 points in the third quarter.
Besides LeBron's impressive game, the other bright spark for the Lakers was Malik Monk. The fifth-year NBA player put up 15 points on six-of-nine shooting in his third game after clearing the NBA's health and safety protocols against COVID-19. Malik also started the ball game for the Lakers, making it his fourth start of the season.
Commenting on Monk's consistent play, LeBron said in the post-game media interaction:
"I've been trying to continue to help him learn and have him in the right position. I understand how gifted he is offensively and he's on the floor with me for a lot of his minutes so just always trying to put him in the right position where he can have the ball and help himself and tonight we had some pretty good moments."
"I have never studied anybody's game" - LeBron James as he continues to put up stellar stats for the LA Lakers
LeBron James turns 37 on December 30. He is averaging 28.0 ppg this season for the LA Lakers. No NBA player has averaged even 15.0 ppg in year 19.
In the post-game media interaction following the Lakers' loss in Memphis, LeBron was asked whether he has been influenced by any NBA player either before him or among his peers whom LeBron paid close attention to as they adapted to the demands of the game in their later years. LeBron replied in the negative, saying:
"No. Absolutely not. I have always respected the generation that came before me. I have always saluted the guys that set the [mile] stones for us to be here today. But I have never studied anybody's game throughout their career on what I can implement for myself. I have always had my own path, my own determination, my own grind. I literally put in the work everyday either from a physical or mental or spiritual path. The game is always running through my veins and I'm thinking about ways I can continue to improve my game throughout the later stage of my career. That's what it is about."
Guess the Lakers players!
