The Lakers' decision to limit LeBron James' minutes early in the season didn't last long, and now we know why.
According to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne, James “liked the idea of limiting his minutes”.
His playing time was less than stellar when he logged just 29 minutes in the Lakers' season-opening loss to the Denver Nuggets.
James' time on the bench that night included some key moments in the fourth quarter. The Lakers were outscored 7-0 at one point in the fourth quarter when James was on the bench, as Denver's four-point lead grew to 11 and the game began to slip away.
After the game, Ham was asked if he would continue to be restricted in minutes.
“We'll see. Likely, yes,” said Ham. “It's easy for him to get caught up in the emotion of the game and he tends to forget that he wants to play these long games, but for him to be effective, we have to pay attention to the results and how long his length is.”
In the Lakers' next game, James played 35 minutes, including the entire fourth quarter, in a 100-95 win over the Phoenix Suns. It was clear that James had found a way, and it didn't take long at all.
After the game, James said playing more minutes was an “easy” call to make.
Ham has been fired by the Lakers. He was released four days after the Lakers were eliminated by the Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs.
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