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‘Ageless’: Lakers Coach Phil Handy Explains How LeBron James Stays on Top of His Game Despite Being 36

Published 09/30/2021, 3:30 PM EDT

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The Los Angeles Lakers have received a lot of love for their moves this season. However, the hate has also been coming in calling them an old team. One of the players in question for that criticism is LeBron James. The ‘King’ will turn 37 during the season and many are raising concerns.

James has often faced a lot of criticism for not having a killer mindset. But that is not the case at all. While he may not be the person to always take the last shot, his drive to prove people wrong has always been there. Even though he is older than most players in the league, he continues to perform at the highest level.

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He is coming off another season averaging 25 points per game – something that is not easy to do when a player is 36 with 18 years of playing time on his feet. Regardless of his on-track glory, James continues to receive hate comments; however, Phil Handy believes the Akron Hammer uses it to fuel himself.

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LeBron James is ageless

James is now entering his 19th year in the league; while most players would be bench warmers by this time, LeBron is the face of the Laker franchise. One of the biggest reasons he can stay on top is because he takes care of himself and works extremely hard.

Lakers assistant, Phil Handy, spoke to Brandon Robinson about how James is constantly trying to prove the haters wrong. Moreover, he also spoke about why LeBron is able to stay on top of his game despite being in his 19th year.

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“For sure, I think he cares about continuing to prove people wrong, more than anything. I don’t think its so much the best player, but I think the noise and the haters and the talk, I think it fuels him to continue to show people that, I’ll use the term ‘ageless’.

“You know people throwing around numbers man, but the dude is ageless. He takes care of himself, he works extremely hard and he puts in the time to keep himself playing at a high level. So, I just think the noise outside of our team and outside of his own personal camp, I think that noise drives him to continue to be great everyday.”

This goes to show that despite being of age, LeBron James is ready to go all out and still compete. This attitude to prove the haters wrong is what makes him the great force that he is.

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Do you think LeBron can lead the Lakers to yet another finals win? Let us know in the comments below.

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Written by:

Anuj Talwalkar

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Anuj Talwalkar is an NBA writer at EssentiallySports. He is a student studying at NM College in Mumbai, aspiring to pursue sports management to follow his love for sports. Anuj started following the NBA last year, and he loves to combine his passion for writing with his understanding of basketball.
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