On March 20, Beijing time, the 2021-22 NBA regular season is in full swing. In today's focus battle, the Lakers challenged the Wizards on the road. Before this game, the Lakers were 9th in the West with 30 wins and 40 losses, and the Wizards were 12th in the East with 29 wins and 40 losses!
After the start of the first quarter, James made two consecutive attacks to the basket, and in the first quarter, James was in excellent shape, with 6 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists on 3-of-6 shooting. After entering the second quarter of the game, James received a pass from Westbrook to complete the dunk, and then broke through the layup and caused a foul, but unfortunately the free throw did not hit.
James then hit two consecutive three-pointers to help the team stretch the lead. After the Wizards requested a timeout, James hit another three-pointer to tie Malone with his career total! James then broke through the basket and hit a layup, surpassing Malone with 36,930 points to rise to the second place in NBA history, behind Only Abdul-Jabbar's 38,387 points!
Throughout the Second Quarter, James shot 7-of-10, including 3-of-4 from three-point range, had 17 points and four rebounds in a single quarter, and scored 23 points in the first half alone, and the Lakers also led the Wizards 67-58.
After entering the third quarter of the game, James quickly scored another basket, and then made another strong attack and caused Porzingis to foul, playing 2+1! In the second half of the quarter, James hit his fourth three-pointer from the bottom right corner of the day, then made another basket and assisted Anthony's three-point shot. In this quarter, James scored 10 points alone, and under his leadership, the Lakers led the Wizards 99:93 to end the third quarter.
In the final quarter of the showdown, the Lakers were overtaken by the Wizards, and James quickly hit a 2+1 hit to help the team stabilize the situation, but then in the next round, he was blocked by Porzingis. Then the two sides fell into anxiety, James scored under the first 2 and a half points of the final game to complete the counterattack, but unfortunately, the Lakers then lost consecutively, helpless to eat defeat!
In the end, the Lakers lost to the Wizards 119:127 on the road, missing two consecutive wins, and they suffered a 16-point reversal. In the past 70 days, the Lakers have not won a straight. James played 36 minutes today, shooting 16-of-29, 4-of-10 from three-point range and 2-of-3 from the free throw line, for a combined 38 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, but in the final quarter, James only shot 2-of-6.
For James, today's game undoubtedly has special significance. Being able to leapfrog Malone to no. 2 on the scoring list is the best compliment for the 37-year-old. In future games, James will be moving towards the first record in Abdul-Jabbar's history!
According to the schedule, the Lakers will challenge the Cavaliers on the road on March 22, and James will return to Cleveland to play against his old club.