- Early in the second quarter of the Lakers' game against the Atlanta Hawks Sunday, Rondo pulled down a defensive rebound and pushed the ball down the floor.
- As his point guard charged into the lane, James sprinted towards the basket. But instead of dishing the ball to the four-time NBA MVP, Rondo faked out his defender and James and took the ball to the rim.
- James, Rondo, and company went on to beat the Hawks in Atlanta 101-96 for their seventh consecutive win.
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LeBron James playfully swatted at teammate Rajon Rondo 's layup after the Los Angeles Lakers point guard faked an alley-oop to the star.
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LeBron James is known for his chase-down blocks, but Sunday's swat looked quite different from the monster stops that typically leave his opponents trembling.
That's because it came against his own team.
James playfully swatted at Rajon Rondo's layup after the Los Angeles Lakers point guard faked an alley-oop to the star. Rondo had pulled down a defensive rebound and pushed the ball down the floor to start the play, which came early in the second quarter of the Lakers' eventual road win over the Atlanta Hawks. As the four-time NBA-All-Star charged into the lane, a wide-open James sprinted towards the basket. But instead of dishing him the ball, Rondo pump-faked, sending his defender scrambling to cover James as he took it to the rim.
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Even James appeared to fall for Rondo's trickery during the play. The four-time NBA MVP rose up and pretended to block his teammate's shot, much to the delight of the commentators covering the game.
Check out the video below:
The Lakers went on to beat Trae Young in Atlanta 101-96 Sunday night for their seventh consecutive win. Los Angeles owns an NBA-best 24-3 record on the season less than a year removed from missing out on the playoffs entirely. LeBron, Rondo, and company will take on three playoff contenders including Giannis Antetokounmpo's Milwaukee Bucks before playing a Christmas-day grudge match against their crosstown rival Los Angeles Clippers.
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