LeBron Puts on Vintage Performance To Prove He Still Has It

The Los Angeles Lakers were already pretty good before LeBron James made his season debut. Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic were playing at an All-Star level, and the rest of the Lakers' role players seemed to fit in well. Adding LeBron into the mix had the potential to make the Lakers one of the most formidable teams in the league. 

So when LeBron returned, and the Lakers didn’t miss a beat, nobody was shocked. The Lakers are 5–1 with LeBron in the lineup. But still, some believe that LeBron is no longer at the peak of his powers and can’t lead a team to a championship ever again. 

Before Sunday night's game, LeBron certainly did look like his abilities had diminished. For one, LeBron’s record streak of games with 10 or more points finally fell. He also had only scored 25 points once in his games back. 

Then on Sunday, LeBron reminded everyone just exactly how dominant he was. 

The Lakers faced a difficult opponent in the Philadelphia 76ers, and they needed a big performance from their stars. Luka Doncic and LeBron James answered the call. Luka had a 31-point triple-double in the game, but the real shine went to LeBron. 

LeBron had a season-high 29 points and seven rebounds with six assists. He also made a key three-pointer late to put the Lakers up. 

While a 29/7/6 performance isn’t exactly vintage dominant LeBron, LeBron did exactly what he needed to get the win. If LeBron can keep putting up huge games like this when it matters most, the Lakers might be a very scary opponent come playoff time.