LeBron James played a crucial role in the Los Angeles Lakers' 104-98 victory over the Houston Rockets on Monday night.
The NBA's all-time leading scorer produced a game-sealing block against Rockets star Alperen Sengun with less than 10 seconds in the game to help secure a hard-fought victory for L.A. at Crypto.com Arena.
James had other things on his mind as well on Monday, though, and this was made evident by his social media post after the win. The four-time NBA champ shared a post from NBA on ESPN commemorating the death of rap legend Nipsey Hussle.
March 31 marked the sixth death anniversary of the renowned hip-hop star, and James just had to send a message to pay tribute to the fallen icon and his good friend.
"LLNH" James wrote, which stands for Long Live Nipsey Hussle.
LeBron James pays tribute on the sixth death anniversary of Nipsey Hussle
(via @kingjames on IG) pic.twitter.com/4HwO0GjoGx
— Paolo Songco (@PaoloSongcoNBA) April 1, 2025
NBA on ESPN shared James' message from six years ago after he learned about Hussle's death. In his post, the Lakers superstar revealed how much of a "stand up dude" Hussle was and how his untimely passing "hurts big time."
Hussle, a known Lakers fan, was killed on March 31, 2019, after being shot at least 10 times in the parking lot of his store, Marathon Clothing, in South Central, L.A. The incident was reportedly caused by a dispute between Hussle and the shooter, Eric Ronald Holder Jr., who has since been found guilty of first-degree murder, among other crimes, and sentenced to 60 years in prison.
Hussle, whose real name is Ermias Asghedom, was 33 when he died.
As for LeBron and the Lakers, Monday's victory over the No. 2 seed Rockets marked L.A.'s second straight win. They improved to 46-29 and are currently just one game behind the third-placed Denver Nuggets with seven more contests to play in the regular season.
Related: NBA in Disbelief Over LeBron James' Crucial Block vs. Rockets
Related: Luka Doncic Goes Viral for Breaking Ankles of Emerging NBA Star
Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved
This story was originally published April 1, 2025 at 6:45 AM.