LeBron James starred as the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the New Orleans Pelicans to reach the NBA play-offs. The 39-year-old scored 23 points in the Lakers’ 110-106 victory and also contributed nine rebounds, nine assists and three steals. The Lakers go into the play-offs as the seventh seed and will face defending champions the Denver Nuggets in the first round. Speaking to reporters, James said: “It was a good all-round team win. This was a long road trip, you almost forget we were in Memphis before these two games. “Tonight was definitely a play-off game so get your mind right, get your body right, try to get as much recovery as we can before we have to go out there on Saturday.