EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- As exhausted as LeBron James appeared after the Los Angeles Lakers' second day of training camp -- plopped down on a chair in the interview room, sneakers unlaced and sweat dripping from his forehead -- the Lakers star explained Thursday that it actually was a sign of fire rather than fatigue.
After last season's camp opened less than two months following L.A.'s championship in the NBA bubble in Orlando, Florida, the team was spent seemingly from the start. But this year, with the Lakers reconvening nearly four months after their first-round playoff loss to the Phoenix Suns, carrying 11 new players and given a fresh chance to capture title No.