LeBron James had a scintillating performance against the Bucks last night, prompting Skip Bayless to backtrack hastily on his 4th quarter comments.
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The Lakers were hosted by the Bucks for their first game in 3 days following their MLK Day defeat to the Warriors. The Staples Center loss must have rankled LeBron, for he came out of the gates with a ton of aggression. James had 10 shots by himself very early in the 2nd period.
He finished the game on 13-of-25 shooting from the field. James did most of his damage from downtown on the night, going 6-for-10 from range. He wasn’t the only hot shooter the Lakers had on the night, as Kentavious Caldwell-Pope outshot him by going 7-for-10.
Giannis and the Bucks held a slender lead initially, but it was gone by the time the teams entered the locker rooms for halftime. The Lakers increased the gap to double digits for a significant period in the 4th. The Bucks got back to within 2, but James buried them with a couple of clutch plays.
Skip Bayless backtracks on LeBron James criticism
Prior to this game, James wasn’t exactly lighting it up from the field in 4th quarters this season. Skip found the perfect opportunity to parade this stat after the Lakers’ loss on Monday night.
LeBron’s 4th quarters in his last 7 games are the best kept secret in basketball because I don’t hear a peep about this trend. The blind witnesses have buried these numbers and I still hear LeBron’s name in the early-MVP race. More @Undisputed, now on FS1 https://t.co/ebqADU0ed5
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) January 21, 2021
But after tonight’s performance, Bayless was forced to eat his words, tweeting a characteristically backhanded compliment for The King.
I love LeBron when he gets called out on Undisputed and he gets mad and says, “WATCH THIS” and he FINALLY has a big 4th quarter, albeit in a game that never really got close. WAY TO GO, KING. Big night and big win at Bucks.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) January 22, 2021
It would really be news if LeBron James ever acknowledged Bayless’ existence, but it’s unlikely.