Things are not going well for LeBron James and his Lakers. The team is well below .500, and his blood pressure appears to have ranged far beyond .500 as “The King” unleashed two profanity-laced outbursts during Los Angeles’ 114-103 loss to the Raptors on Tuesday.
The trouble started early for the Lakers as the Raptors jumped out to a 24-point first-quarter lead.
LeBron first let his teammates have it in the second quarter when he got called for a foul after Los Angeles gave up an offensive rebound. In a striking act of maturity and leadership, LeBron reacted by repeatedly slamming the ball on the floor and screaming F-bombs.
LeBron’s other moment of extraordinarily bizarre and reckless behavior came later in the game when he savagely spiked the ball in the face of Toronto’s Scottie Barnes while trying to save the ball for LA.
I get it. You’re trying to save the ball and win the game. But when you’re only chance at keeping the ball is viciously spiking the ball off a guy’s face, you should probably let that go.
The Lakers had lost to the Suns 140-111 the night before, so maybe nerves were raw after the second crushing loss in a row? In any event, not a good look for “The King.”
At 29-39, the Lakers are on the cusp of getting run out of playoff competition.