To begin their playoff push for the 2018-19 NBA season, LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Houston Rockets by overcoming a 19-point deficit.
As the Lakers found their defensive intensity in the second half against the Rockets, they were looking forward to sustaining it on a two-game road trip against the New Orleans Pelicans and Memphis Grizzlies.
Unfortunately, James and the Lakers lost to the Pelicans, 128-115, who were playing without Anthony Davis.
With little margin for error at this point of the season, James anticipated these types of challenges when he signed a four-year, $154 million contract in free agency, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“I knew it was going to be very challenging just because of the experience the roster had at that point of time.