Lakers News: LeBron James Named Western Conference All-Star Team Captain
Los Angeles Lakers All-Star power forward LeBron James has been named to his 19th All-Star team, the league announced live during its Thursday night TNT broadcast. He has now tied LA Hall of Fame center Kareem Abdul Jabbar's all-time league record for All-Star appearances.
James will be joined by Golden State Warriors All-Star point guard Stephen Curry, Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic and, in something of a surprise, New Orleans Pelicans power forward Zion Williamson, who has missed 20 games this season with injuries. Sacramento Kings center Domantas Sabonis has been excellent on what is currently the West's 27-20 third seed.
As the Lakers' official Twitter notes, 2023 marks the sixth consecutive year that The Chosen One will be named a captain, meaning he was the leading vote-getter in his conference.
James, 38, has been insanely effective even in his 20th NBA season. Though he is somewhat culpable for his team's 23-26 record, in as much as he was a big reason the Lakers pushed to trade three major role players and a first-round draft pick for a washed-up Russell Westbrook in the summer of 2021, you certainly can't blame LA's run this season on him. He's the only reason Los Angeles has even been hovering around a .500 record, while playing without star center Anthony Davis (probably doomed to miss 2023 All-Star Game inclusion due to his litany of injury absences) since December 16th.
Through 39 games this season, the 6'9" vet is averaging 29.9 points on .507/.304/.769 shooting splits, 8.5 rebounds, seven assists and a steal.
