The 2020 chapter of the Celtics-Lakers rivalry begins Saturday night, as Boston hosts Los Angeles, the defending NBA champions.
And Brad Stevens knows this certainly isn’t just like any other game.
The Celtics coach on Friday spoke in depth about what it means to be part of the storied rivalry, and about how the Lakers have revamped their team after tying Boston with 17 titles this past fall.
But one thing that hasn’t changed is that LeBron James, despite being 36 years old, still is absolutely killing it for Los Angeles.
“I think I’ve learned not to doubt the greats of all time,” Stevens said Saturday in his pregame media availability when asked about James’ incredible level of play. “Everywhere I turn right now everybody wants to talk about Tom Brady here in New England who is 43 and going to another Super Bowl, right?”
In the 18th season of his career, James has shown no slowing down, averaging 25.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 7.5 assists in 20 games thus far.
“I think the bottom line is if anything, I think LeBron has continued to improve and you see it in so many different areas and so many different ways,” Stevens said. “But I thought he was fantastic in the bubble and I think he’s just picked right up off of that. And there aren’t many guys like him that can play this well, this late. But there were not many guys like him before he got to this point.”
Hard to argue with that, whether you believe James currently is the best player in the league or not.
The Celtics and Lakers tip off at 8:30 p.m. ET.
