LeBron sets Lakers on playoff run with limitless possibility

LOS ANGELES: LeBron James didn’t respond at first after Dillon Brooks called him old and questioned his abilities early in the Lakers’ first-round playoff series with Memphis. A day after James and the Lakers eliminated Brooks’ Grizzlies in dominant fashion, James let Jay-Z speak for him. The top scorer in NBA history tweeted some particularly pointed lyrics Saturday from Hova’s 2006 track, “Trouble.” Among several more profane bars was the phrase: “It’s apparent you’re staring at a legend.” Perhaps to everybody except Brooks, James’ legend has been fully secure for years.

He is working on another chapter this season, and the league is starting to realize there’s no telling how far James and his Lakers can take the story of his 20th NBA season. The Lakers are on a 14-4 roll after finishing off the 51-win Grizzlies in six games. After becoming the first No.

7 seed in the best-of-seven first-round playoff era to win a series, they’re on to the second round Tuesday night, where they’ll face the winner of Sunday’s Game 7 between Golden State and Sacramento. “It gets even harder when you move a level up,” James said. “We were able to conquer Level 1, and now we move up.” After losing their first five games under rookie head coach Darvin Ham, after beginning the season 2-10, after sitting six games under .500 on Valentine’s Day, the Lakers have been surging ever since the trade deadline.