Eastern Conference Recap, Dec. 30: LeBron James Has 47-Point Performance to Beat the Atlanta Hawks on His 38th Birthday
After losing to the Miami Heat Wednesday night, LeBron James said, “I want to win and give myself a chance to win and compete for championships.”
James proved this with a strong performance against the Atlanta Hawks Friday night. He celebrated his 38th birthday with 47 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. Nobody on his team had more than 20 points, with James continuing to show age isn't a factor in his game.
OTHER NOTES
-The Washington Wizards blew out the Orlando Magic with star performances Kristaps Porzingis and Kyle Kuzma. Porzingis is averaging the most points by a center outside of Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic. Kuzma is on track to have the best season of his career, averaging highs in points, assists and field goal percentage.
-The Milwaukee Bucks ended a four-game losing streak with a win against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Giannis Antetokounmpo continued his MVP case, producing his fourth 40-point performance in the last six games.
-Gary Trent Jr.’s season-high 35-point game lifted the Toronto Raptors past the Phoenix Suns. O.G. Anunoby and Pascal Siakam contributed 42 to aid Trent. Meanwhile, Phoenix continues to reel without Devin Booker, losing five of their last six games. DeAndre Ayton scored just four points on 2 of 10 shooting.
MORE HEAT-RELATED STORIES
Takeaways from Friday's loss to Denver Nuggets. CLICK HERE
How Miami Heat Twitter reacted to loss to Nuggets. CLICK HERE
LeBron James unsure how many years he will play. CLICK HERE
For a look at some of the latest Heat apparel. CLICK HERE
If you wanna bet on any games at @PrizePicks or PrizePicks.com, use our link and code. They will match your first bet for up to $100. Here's the code: PR-R1YOFY6
Jayden Armant is a contributor to Inside the Heat. He is a student at Howard University. He can be reached at jayden.armant@bison.howard.edu or follow him on Twitter @jaydenarmant.
