LeBron James’ double-digit scoring streak ends in the most LeBron way possible

A baby born on the last day LeBron James scored single-digit points in an NBA regular-season game would be an adult today. It’s been almost 19 years since James was held below 10 points in a regular season, the last time being January 5, 2007. That’s a streak of 1,297 games in total. But when the final buzzer sounded between the Los Angeles Lakers and Toronto Raptors on Thursday, James had just eight points. The legendary streak had finally, surprisingly, come to an end.

And it ended in the most LeBron James way possible. With the score tied at 120 and the final seconds ticking down, Austin Reaves, who finished the game with 44 points, tried to create an opening for a winner. When Scottie Barnes slid in to double-team Reaves, he passed it to a wide-open James, who rushed into the lane. A frantic Immanuel Quickley spun from the corner to collect it, which left Rui Hachimura wide open. James has been doing what he’s been doing for even longer than he’s been scoring double-digit points in regular-season games: he’s been making the right play of basketball. He passed the ball to Hachimura, who made the game-winning 3-pointer, leaving James, who could have attempted a game-winning field goal of his own to reach 10 points, stuck at eight points as time expired.

Throughout his career, James has been criticized for making passes like this. In Game 1 of the 2007 Eastern Conference Finals, he made a similar pass to Donyell Marshall in the final seconds, but missed the possible game-winning 3-pointer and the Cavaliers lost by two. In Game 5 of the 2020 NBA Finals, James could have won the championship with his own final shot. He instead passed the ball to Danny Green, who also missed. His critics, many of whom like to point out how eager players like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant are to take game-ending shots, screamed that as a star he should have been responsible for scoring those critical final points.

But James was never wired like Jordan or Bryant. He always makes the right basketball play, even if that play means giving the ball to someone else. This can happen during the first quarter of a random game. This may come with the title on the line. It may even cost him one of his most legendary streaks. But James will always make the play he believes gives his team the best chance to win. He did it on Thursday, and it paid off for the Lakers. James never doubted the process.

“You always make the right play,” James said after the game. “That’s just my MO. That’s how I was taught the game. I’ve been doing that my whole career. There’s not even a second to guess it. Once they doubled the AR and the ball got to me, I know it’s a numbers game. We have a 4-on-3 advantage. I was just trying to put the ball at the right time, on target in Rui’s socket, in his shooting pocket, and he dropped it.”

This attitude will serve the Lakers well this season. James is now 41 years old. Through his first five games this season, he was already averaging a career-low 15.2 points per game. James tends to start seasons slowly as a Laker, but there’s a pretty noticeable difference this season as he recovers from sciatica. The player accustomed to controlling every aspect of his team’s offense is clearly struggling to get up to speed. James already had a scare streak Monday against the Phoenix Suns. He finished the loss with exactly 10 points and it took him 31 minutes to get them.

But the Lakers don’t need James to score at the volume he usually has. Reaves and Luka Dončić entered Thursday’s game averaging a combined 63.4 points per game, the highest ever by a pair of teammates after the merger. The Lakers have more than enough points.

What they need is for James to fit in. Play hard on defense, get rebounds and make a smart pass. He did all this on Thursday. Case in point: He may not have reached double-digit points, but he had 11 assists in a win. That’s always been his preference, and that’s what’s going to make him a valuable player even if age leads to inevitable decline. James isn’t as fast as he used to be. He may not be able to jump as high or play as hard possession by possession. But he’s a pathologically selfless basketball genius, and he’s the kind of player every team could benefit from.