As the Miami Heat come to town, one cannot help but wonder what life might have been like had LeBron James chosen to come to the Los Angeles Clippers rather than taking his talents to South Beach. It's a far-fetched scenario to be sure, but plugging LeBron into a lineup with Blake Griffin and Eric Gordon, not to mention DeAndre Jordan and Eric Bledsoe, would have been the best young nucleus in the NBA.
Of course, LeBron is the best player in the league, and any team with him would win a ton of games. Given how well the unconventionally constructed Heat are playing (they are 30-9, have won 21 of their last 22 games, and have won 13 straight road games), it's hard to fault LeBron in his free agent decision. That said, LeBron has performed quite well at Staples Center. Since 2007, LeBron James is 8-1 in nine games in Los Angeles:
LeBron James At Staples Center | |||||
Date | Opponent | Pts | Reb | Ast | Results |
1/13/07 | Clippers | 28 | 6 | 6 | W, 104-92 |
2/15/07 | Lakers | 38 | 4 | 3 | W, 114-108 |
11/11/07 | Clippers | 22 | 5 | 8 | W, 103-95 |
1/27/08 | Lakers | 41 | 9 | 4 | W, 98-95 |
1/19/09 | Lakers | 23 | 9 | 4 | L, 88-105 |
3/10/09 | Clippers | 32 | 13 | 11 | W, 87-83 |
12/25/09 | Lakers | 26 | 4 | 9 | W, 102-87 |
1/16/10 | Clippers | 32 | 4 | 4 | W, 102-101 |
12/25/10 | Lakers | 27 | 11 | 10 | W, 96-80 |
Totals | 29.9 | 7.2 | 6.6 | 8-1 (99.3-94.0) | |
Source: Basketball-Reference.com |
Then again, LeBron has averaged 28.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 7.2 assists against everybody for the last four and a half years. Maybe he's just great, and the arena doesn't have much to do with it. Whatever the reason, the Clippers will have their hands full tonight with King James.
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