LeBron James says it is always an ‘honor’ to play in front of Drake

Ever since the Los Angeles Lakers got back from the All-Star break, everything they’ve done has left any one of their players, coaches, front office members, or fans thinking “I’m upset.” But on this Saturday, all of those groups of people associated with the Lakers have to be thinking life is good, as the team pulled out an exciting 128-123 overtime victory last night in Toronto over the Raptors.

The most exhilarating play of the night, however, came from Russell Westbrook, who did far more than just hit one shot to end the evening with his first triple-double of the 2022 calendar year, but the huge play left his big night with a defining moment nonetheless.

Below, you can see an incredible photo from the moments immediately following the shot. Of course, as expected with any viral moment in Toronto, Drake was involved, as the cameraperson captured his hilarious reaction to the huge jumper.

And if you’re wondering, yes, Westbrook has seen the picture, as his wife sent it to him before he even reached the podium to discuss it.

Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images

Even LeBron James is already using it for meme purposes.

And although this one win isn’t going to do much for the general outlook of what the Lakers’ chances are in this year’s postseason, it’s at least allowing the team — and us fans — an opportunity to laugh now, cry later as we enjoy this cathartic moment for the time being.

That’s exactly the type of sentiment expressed by James as he spoke to the Lakers sideline reporter Mike Trudell on Spectrum SportsNet immediately following the game. He talked about how much joy he’s having while playing lately (or at least in this one single night), with that joy being multiplied on Friday due to Drake sitting courtside, as he said the following when asked if he had extra fun playing in front of his extremely popular buddy.

“Oh, absolutely. That’s my brother, man. We support each other in every endeavor that we do. I come here to his hometown, he makes me feel like it’s my hometown. And whenever he comes to wherever I’m at, it’s vice versa. It’s always an honor to be in front of him. That’s such greatness right there.”

Look, this season has been a dumpster fire. I know this. But it’s definitely a cool moment to see the crew love between your favorite team’s best player and the guy who is arguably the most popular musician in the world for the past decade.

Now, can the Lakers extend this good energy to Washington tonight when they take on the Wizards in a back-to-back? We’ll just have to see if that’s in God’s plan. But don’t get mad at me if I’m in my feelings for just a small and short moment this season as this game was just too good to not have it distract me from how bad this whole year has been.

It’d a blessing to get these types of games sprinkled in with the team’s 12 remaining matchups, instead of those remaining contests resembling the three-game losing streak that preceded Friday night’s win. Either way, if you’re reading this, it’s too late (h/t @OVOLakeShow on Twitter) for the Lakers to take these good vibes and convert them into a run that would get them into a possible playoff spot that would allow them to not have to play one of the top Western Conference teams in the first round.

Instead, the Lakers will have to continue soldiering on without Anthony Davis for the time being, with nearly nothing left to play for other than trying to find more of these good vibes to try and keep their spirits up heading into the postseason.

But don’t let the whole “12 remaining games” thing fool you... it’s far from over.

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