While many people think the Cleveland Cavaliers megastar, LeBron James ,needs rest, the truth is he won’t be getting any anytime soon and that’s probably the way he likes it.
Cleveland Cavaliers small forward LeBron James just completed the second half of a back-to-back with a magnificent performance against the Indiana Pacers.
He finished with 31 points on 12 of 17 shooting including 4 of 5 from behind the arc. The night before in Minnesota, James finished with 25 points and 14 assists on 10 of 14 shooting.
However, James accumulated over 39 minutes Tuesday in Minnesota and 32 minutes the following night in Cleveland. On top of that, LeBron is averaging the second most minutes per game in the entire league with 37.6 minutes per game. He has also played the 8th most minutes overall with a total of 1,920 minutes this year. On top of that he has already eclipsed Michael Jordan in minutes played including the playoffs in his career.
The next six weeks may continue this trend with Kevin Love out with a knee injury. The Cavs will most likely need him to continue to play 35 plus minutes a game for them to keep the top spot in the conference.
When James was asked if he needs more rest earlier this week, he responded by saying, “I rest when I retire.”
The Kevin Love injury won't slow @KingJames' relentless drive: "I rest when I retire." pic.twitter.com/QWPTPB10xM
— Bally Sports Cincinnati (@BallySportsCIN) February 14, 2017
LeBron doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon. He is having his best season since returning to Cleveland in 2014. James is averaging 25.8 points , 8.9 assists, and 7.8 rebounds per game. All that while having his third highest effective field goal percentage (.583), his second highest 3 point percentage (.380), and is averaging the most assists of his career (8.9).
James is playing with more energy than he has in years. That being said, the national focus is on how many minutes LeBron is playing. The Warriors core players are all playing under 35 minutes per game.
While LeBron is playing 37.6 minutes per game, it is the fourth lowest he’s played in his career. James has never finished a season playing under 35 minutes per game. He is playing only 2 more minutes per game than he did last season, which was his career low.
The only season where he played less minutes besides the last two years in Cleveland was the 2011-12 season. The reason why he played less that season was presumably because that was the shortened season due to the lockout. That shortened season featured many more back-to-backs than what were in a normal 82 game season.
While James may be playing more minutes than the casual fan or NBA pundit would like, this is something he has done his entire career. It’s the only way he knows how to play. It’s what makes him the player that he is.
James comes off as being egotistical and short-sided when you hear him say things like, “I rest when I retire.” However, that couldn’t be further from the truth. LeBron knows that what happens in May and June is much more important than February.
James is a fanatic about conditioning. He knows his body better than anyone. We’ve seen LeBron take a few weeks off in the past and make midseason trips to Miami to recover. He isn’t afraid to take a break when he needs to.
LeBron isn’t going to sacrifice June for February. While the rest of the country will be talking about how LeBron is playing too many minutes, just remember that he will be at the top of his game in May and June.
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Do you think LeBron James needs more rest? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section or Twitter @KJG_NBA.