{"id":701515,"date":"2026-04-06T15:26:20","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T15:26:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/701515\/"},"modified":"2026-04-06T15:26:20","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T15:26:20","slug":"lebron-james-praises-luke-kennards-career-performance-despite-lakers-loss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/701515\/","title":{"rendered":"LeBron James Praises Luke Kennard’s Career Performance Despite Lakers’ Loss"},"content":{"rendered":"

LeBron James<\/a> took a step back and handed control of the Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> ‘ offense on Sunday against the Dallas Mavericks<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The four-time MVP still finished with 30 points, 15 assists and seven rebounds in a strong all-around showing.<\/p>\n

Without Luka Doncic<\/a> and Austin Reaves, who are both sidelined with season-ending injuries, the Lakers fell 134-128<\/a> at American Airlines Center.<\/p>\n

It marked the second straight defeat for the playoff-bound team. The Purple and Gold now sits at 50-28 and tied with the Denver Nuggets<\/a> for third in the Western Conference.<\/p>\n

Despite the loss, James found a silver lining and praised one teammate\u2019s standout effort.<\/p>\n

\"Los<\/p>\n

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) warms upTroy Taormina-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

(Troy Taormina-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Lakers head coach JJ Redick made major adjustments<\/a> after losing his starting backcourt. Facing a shortage of playmakers, he took an unconventional approach Sunday against the Mavericks.<\/p>\n

Redick tapped Luke Kennard to run the offense. It was a bold shift for the veteran shooter, long known for his 3-and-D, catch-and-shoot role.<\/p>\n

The move surprised many, given that the Lakers feature one of basketball\u2019s best point forwards in James. Kennard validated the decision, producing 15 points, a career-high 16 rebounds, and 11 assists in 41 minutes.<\/p>\n

Although his effort could not deliver a win, Kennard earned high marks from his teammates. James praised Kennard’s steady playmaking.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe did an excellent job,” James said of Kennard postgame via Lakers Daily on X<\/a>. “Thirteen defensive rebounds, and then just feeding the ball, getting guys in their proper spots.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kennard still faced growing pains. He struggled from the field, going 5-of-17 and 1-of-5 from three. Even so, his assertive rebounding and smart playmaking brought fresh energy to the lineup.<\/p>\n

His emergence as a capable facilitator adds a new wrinkle for the Lakers as they navigate injuries and search for stability before the playoffs.<\/p>\n

Related: Anthony Davis Admits Mistake After Lakers Game<\/a><\/p>\n

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports<\/a> on Apr 6, 2026, where it first appeared in the NBA<\/a> section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LeBron James took a step back and handed control of the Los Angeles Lakers ‘ offense on Sunday…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":697426,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3793],"tags":[1013,7,686,149,4057,187,1661,185,150,368,1171,166,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-701515","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-dallas-mavericks","8":"tag-austin-reaves","9":"tag-basketball","10":"tag-dallas","11":"tag-dallas-mavericks","12":"tag-dallasmavericks","13":"tag-denver-nuggets","14":"tag-jj-redick","15":"tag-lebron-james","16":"tag-los-angeles-lakers","17":"tag-luka-doncic","18":"tag-luke-kennard","19":"tag-mavericks","20":"tag-nba"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116358466911231021","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/701515","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=701515"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/701515\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/697426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=701515"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=701515"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=701515"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}