Lakers' LeBron James takes over -- 'Easy' call nixing minutes limit - ESPN

LOS ANGELES — Down a dozen heading into the fourth quarter and facing an 0-2 start to the season barring a comeback against the Phoenix Suns, Lakers coach Darvin Ham had a decision to make — either stick to the 30-minute guideline planned for LeBron James' playing time and have him on the court only about half the final frame, or push the limit and see if L.A. could ride the 21-year veteran to victory.

Ham chose the latter. James nearly outscored the Suns singlehandedly while playing the entire fourth, and the Lakers won 100-95 to bounce back from a disappointing opening loss in Denver.

«He asked me if I could go the [whole] quarter, and I looked at the time and the score and what was going on in the game, and it was an easy answer for myself,» James said after finishing with 21 points, 9 assists and 8 rebounds in 35 minutes. «I know how much work I've put in to be able to play quarters or whatever the case may be. And I understand that we definitely have a system put in place, but tonight called for me to go outside the box.»

The Lakers outscored the Suns 28-11 in the fourth, with James scoring 10 points, including four straight on consecutive layups to break a 91-91 tie and give L.A. a four-point cushion with 41.0 seconds remaining.

To help build in some extra rest for the 38-year-old star, Ham saved three timeouts for the fourth. He called one with 4:55 remaining, another with 3:07 left and the Lakers were gifted two more breaks by the Suns. Former Lakers coach Frank Vogel used a challenge to overturn an out-of-bounds call with 2:19 remaining and also called for time with 26.6 seconds left to set up an offensive possession.

«We were dragging our feet there for the better part of the first half and things weren't