No Davis, no worries: LeBron hails Lakers' recruits

Davis suffered an Achilles strain during Sunday's loss to the Denver Nuggets, though he avoided a rupture as he sat out the Timberwolves clash.

In his absence, James posted 30 points, had 13 rebounds and seven assists, but also had support from German guard Dennis Schroder (24 points), who arrived from Oklahoma City Thunder in the offseason.

James is averaging 25.7 points, 8.2 rebounds, 7.9 assists per game this season, with a .759 win percentage. According to Stats Perform, this is the fourth time in his illustrious career he is averaging 25/seven/seven while winning at least 75 per cent of his games played in a season. No other player in NBA history has had such a season.

LeBron James for the @Lakers so far this season:25.7 PPG8.2 RPG7.9 APG.759 win pctThis would be the 4th time in his career he averaged 25/7/7 while winning at least 75 percent of his games played in a season. No other player in NBA history has even had one such season.

— Stats By STATS (@StatsBySTATS) February 17, 2021

Fellow recruits Marc Gasol (11 points and five rebounds), Montrezl Harrell (17 points off the bench) and Wesley Matthews also all earned praise also from the four-time NBA MVP.

"To have the production that we had tonight from our group, Dennis, Trez, Wes and Marc they were huge for us," James told Spectrum Sportsnet post-game.

'We went out in the offseason and got some really good pieces. Tonight was an example of that.

"We had one of our biggest pieces out and everyone came in and chipped in a bit more."

Talk to 'em, King @KingJames x #NBAAllStar pic.twitter.com/tHr9PDONDj

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) February 17, 2021

The win improved the Lakers' record to 21-7, putting the reigning champions in a strong position ahead of next month's All-Star break.

"Our goals don't change," James said. "It still stays the same. we want to share the ball, move the ball offensively and play stress-free basketball.

"Defensively we want to communicate, make teams take tough shots and defensive rebound. If we do that, we're going to give ourselves a good chance to win every night."

James also had special praise for Minnesota's 2020 number one draft pick Anthony Edwards, who top-scored for the Timberwolves with 28 points in his impressive rookie season.

"He's a great kid," said James who was the number one pick in 2003. "We obviously know what he can do with a game of basketball.