Even though LeBron James dropped 38 points, the Timberwolves still clinched Game 3 with a 116-104 win, thanks to Anthony Edwards’ near-perfect performance. Luka was sick, but honestly, even if he’d been healthy, the Lakers would’ve had a mountain of a task to win on the Timberwolves’ home court. What’s mind-blowing is that with Luka in such rough shape, LeBron kept the game competitive until the final 5 minutes.

If LeBron hadn’t seen Luka pushing through, he wouldn’t have played nearly the entire final 12 minutes—he only sat when garbage time hit with 38 seconds left. Luka had been vomiting all afternoon; in the regular season, he definitely would’ve sat this one out. Later, Austin Reaves said he thought Luka wouldn’t play the last two quarters because he looked so awful in the locker room. But shockingly, Luka was back on the court less than a minute into the third quarter.

Maybe seeing LeBron drop 16 points in the second quarter to put the Lakers up by 4, Luka felt they had a shot and forced himself back. Too bad he had no gas left—he couldn’t hit shots, couldn’t drive, and couldn’t keep up on defense.

Calling Luka and LeBron “Batman and Robin” is catchy, but it’s misleading. When Luka joined the Lakers, LeBron stepped away from being a playmaking forward. He handed all playmaking duties to Luka and moved to power forward because Anthony Davis left, leaving no one in the paint. Playing inside, LeBron often had to cover power forward and center roles on defense. It’s a massive transition, especially since the Lakers had no true center.

In basketball’s essence, modern ball is all about offensive-defensive integration—no one can thrive alone. In another sense, this is LeBron sacrificing for Luka’s arrival. He’s been on the other side of this before, when others sacrificed for him.

That “other” was Dwyane Wade. When LeBron went to the Heat, the first question was: Whose team is this? Was Wade the leader, or LeBron? In year one, both dropped their scoring—Wade by 1.1 points, LeBron by 3.0, though he still outscored Wade. Starting year two, LeBron took the reins, his scoring rebounding, while Wade dropped another 3.4 points. The media stopped debating who owned the Heat, but LeBron knew better than anyone how much his buddy Wade gave up. Wade was only 30 then.

Wade at shooting guard, LeBron as the playmaking forward—they clicked seamlessly. Both were Batman, both willing to be each other’s Robin. Basketball is a team sport; roles shouldn’t create hierarchy, especially in duos like Luka-LeBron or James-Wade, who transcend simple division of labor.

Luka came to the Lakers to inherit LeBron’s mantle. LeBron’s retiring soon—maybe in a year or two. Handing the reins to Luka early ensures no leadership void when he’s gone—just a seamless transition. That’s why LeBron’s sacrificing, especially playing full-time inside without a center. For a 40-year-old to pull off such a transition？That’s legendary.

If he’s really “Robin,” then this Robin out-Batmaned Batman himself on the day Luka played sick.