Sunday afternoon after a valuable victory for the Los Angeles Lakers in New Orleans, LeBron James asked aloud how many games he ended up playing in his just-concluded 21st NBA regular season.
The answer was officially 71, but really 72 if counting the in-season tournament championship game which awkwardly isn't counted. That's 16 (17 unofficially) more games than last season and the most in his six-year tenure with the Lakers.
James shook his head in satisfaction.
"That's pretty cool," James said. "At this point in my career to play 70-plus games and be available for my guys.