It’s good to be the King
OAKLAND, Calif. – Most of the fans who gathered around the tunnel to the Cleveland Cavaliers’ locker room didn’t realize they had just witnessed LeBron James’ second triple-double in three games, since the feat wasn’t announced in the arena.
But as the Cavs left the court following a 105-87 win over Golden State, one fan still shouted above the rest: “Every night! That’s how ‘Bron does it every night!”
The fat guy in the No. 23 jersey might soon be right about his hero, who had 28 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists to cap his sparkling six-game road trip.
Though James still hasn’t reached the midway point of his second NBA season, his teammates and coaches are wondering whether a triple-double might soon be an average night for basketball’s most gifted youngster. Even James can’t deny his game is uniquely suited to this particular statistical feat.
“It’s hard to average a triple-double, but I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing, and I’ll come close to it,” James said. “It’s not a goal of mine … but I’ll keep trying to play well.”
Nobody around the NBA was surprised last week when James became the youngest player in league history to reach double figures in points, rebounds and assists. After several near-misses in recent games, the 20-year-old had 27 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in Portland, beating previous record-holder Lamar Odom by nearly five weeks.
And James did it again Saturday night, picking up two assists in the final minutes against the Warriors to wrap it up. His teammates knew the numbers, and they celebrated when Zydrunas Ilgauskas hit a 3-pointer with 30 seconds left for James’ final assist.
In Cleveland’s last seven games, James averaged 27.4 points, 9.3 rebounds and 8.6 assists while keeping the Cavs in first place in the Central Division. He did it all while wearing a clear plastic mask to protect his bruised cheekbone.
James is almost certain to be a starter for the Eastern Conference in next month’s All-Star Game. With half the season still to go, coach Paul Silas believes James is ready to do more great things – and put plenty of double-digit numbers on his scoresheet.
“He’s going to play big minutes, and if he’s out there for any length of time, he should be productive,” Silas said. “(A triple-double) every night is not out of the realm of possibility. You get shooters around him, which makes the assists very easy, and with his scoring and rebounding he should be able to do it every night.”
James’ game seems particularly suited for such a notion. He is talented enough to be a big-time scorer, tall enough to be an effective rebounder and smart enough to be a superb playmaker – with a court sense that sometimes reminds spectators of John Stockton or Magic Johnson.
There is precedent for this achievement: Oscar Robertson averaged a triple-double in his second NBA season, getting 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds and 11.4 assists per game with the Cincinnati Royals in 1961-62.
The Big O nearly duplicated the feat two years later, averaging 31.4 points, 11.0 assists and 9.9 rebounds. He averaged a triple-double through his first five NBA seasons and finished his career with an NBA-record 181.
Johnson had 138 triple-doubles, but never averaged double digits in rebounds.
James admires Robertson and Johnson – and like those stars, he considers assists to be the most important statistic of the three.
“I love making my teammates happy.”