By Shaun Powell, nba.com

The July 31 season restart may represent 35-year-old LeBron James’ best chance to win an NBA championship with the Los Angeles Lakers.

The desire to return to basketball in July was fed by a cocktail of motivation and incentive, guzzled by a league that would much rather ratchet up the endangered 2019-20 season than wrap it up.

And while there are obvious and multiple reasons for the willingness to cope with the complex chore of saving the season here in the rubble of coronavirus, here is the most meaningful one: LeBron James.

The sport’s box office king is healthy, hyper and, last we saw, still serving up quality basketball. Therefore, this is the tonic for a league and its network partners looking to recoup staggering losses from a four-month delay, and for legions of fans starved for live basketball drama instead of a documentary from a foregone era. And it is a tonic for a 35-year-old legend who knows this could be his best or only chance to win a title with his third team.

Would the league be so hell-bent on moving mountains to resume play if, say, LeBron was hurt and unable to suit up? Perhaps so. But with LeBron having a reasonably strong chance of reaching the finish line with the Los Angeles Lakers, and maybe raising his arms in celebration if he breaks the tape, there’s a bit more urgency by all parties to see this through.

With all due respect to the Milwaukee Bucks and the defending champions Toronto Raptors and the Clippers rising up on the other side of LA, they aren’t the engine that’s powering this undertaking. If LeBron and the Lakers are just as good over the next several weeks as they were the first several months, the intrigue and the ratings will be worth the wait.