The NBA playoffs have reached the conference finals, but the Los Angeles Lakers are notably absent. After finishing third in the Western Conference standings, LA was eliminated in the opening round by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
There were several factors that led to the Lakers’ early exit, with one being a lack of consistent production outside of LeBron James and Luka Doncic. This superstar duo helped lead LA to the third seed, and combined for 55.6 points in five postseason contests.
For James, the loss to Minnesota concluded his 22nd NBA season that saw him appear in 70 regular season contests.
Already the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, James remained very productive in year 22. The four-time Finals MVP averaged 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 8.2 assists. This production earned him his 21st career All-NBA selection, which the NBA announced on Friday.
James received 289 voting points, landing him on the Second Team. Reacting to this news from the league, James reshared the NBA’s official announcement on his Instagram story.
Among players on the Second Team, James trailed only Anthony Edwards in voting points. He also received 17 first place votes, which ranked atop all non-First Team players.
In additional to his overall numbers in the 2024-25 season, James was very durable for LA. At age-40, James ranked 32nd in the NBA in total minutes played with 2,444. All of this contributed to his All-NBA nod
James is the first player in NBA history to make an All-NBA team at 40 years old (h/t StatMamba).
