LeBron James and Marc Gasol are part of an anomalous stat that would certainly make NBA history if they could sustain it for 72 games.
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The Lakers are at a league-best 5-2 record, and well on course to making the top spot their own. Despite losses to the Clippers on opening and the Blazers thereafter, they’re on a 3-game win streak now. LeBron hasn’t even had to break a sweat so far, except for their Blazers game.
The highest score that a Lakers player has notched this season so far is Anthony Davis getting 34 against San Antonio. The Spurs tested LA to the limit before some clutch play in the final minute of the 4th gave them the W.
Marc Gasol, however, hasn’t really had a bright start if you go by box score stats. That doesn’t mean, though, that he isn’t impacting games – as you’ll see.
Marc Gasol and LeBron James have been a lethal duo for the Lakers this season
LeBron James and Marc Gasol have combined for a net rating of 28.3 points per 100 possessions through 7 games. No duo in NBA history has ever sustained such a net rating, so it would be unrealistic to expect them to do this.
Nevertheless, small sample sizes sometimes throw up stats of this sort that aficionados pay attention to.
LeBron James & Marc Gasol have the best Net Rating (+28.3) of any two players in the league who have played at least 100 minutes together so far this season. pic.twitter.com/PWSdjpBAxr
— Laker Film Room (@LakerFilmRoom) January 4, 2021
They aren’t the only anomalous duo to have a net rating in excess of 25 points per 100 possessions either. Patrick Beverley and Kawhi Leonard are +27 pts/100 poss through 7 games themselves, and they’ve shared the floor a lot more often through 5 games together.
Jeff Teague and Jayson Tatum are the unlikeliest duo on the list by far, outscoring opponents by a whopping 26.7 points/100 possessions. One really needs to question if this duo will be a net positive
