LeBron James gets real on leading role with Lakers without Luka Doncic

The Los Angeles Lakers advanced to the NBA Western Conference semifinals on Friday. They defeated the Houston Rockets in six games despite playing without Luka Doncic. The Slovenian star continues to recover from a Grade 2 hamstring strain suffered on April 2.

LeBron James has stepped up in his absence. The four-time MVP averaged 23.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 8.3 assists and 1.3 steals in 38.7 minutes. Despite being 41 years old, he proved that he can still be his team’s No. 1 option.

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A new episode of the “Mind the Game” podcast was released on Tuesday. James’ co-host, Steve Nash, asked him about his thoughts on carrying the load with Doncic sidelined.

“It’s definitely not the situation that I would want to be under the circumstances, obviously,” James said. “I understand that I can always tap back into this role, and it’s something I’ve done for the majority, if not my entire career. But I wouldn’t want to do it under the circumstances that we’re in.

“When we’re losing an MVP-caliber player in Luka to start the playoffs and we’re losing a 25-plus-point scorer in Austin Reaves to start a series, you don’t never want to go into the postseason and not have your guys, your soldiers. Yeah, it’s definitely been challenging, but I’ve just tried to weather the storm and just rise to the occasion as much as I could.”

LeBron James and the Lakers will challenge the Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder swept the Phoenix Suns in the opening round and have a healthy roster. They are also the favorites to win the title again.

However, James and company will not go down without a fight. The 22-time All-Star is looking to win his fifth ring, and he is expected to give it his all this year.

Doncic also has a chance to return later in the series, which would boost Los Angeles’ chances of upsetting the defending champions.