This wasn’t the LeBron-Knicks faceoff that really matters

There was the warm embrace when LeBron James marched over to the Knicks bench and gave David Fizdale a tight hug just before the tipoff of Knicks-Lakers Sunday afternoon at the Garden.

And there they were again in the bowels of the Garden chatting it up after the Knicks had claimed a 124-123 victory to end an eight-game losing streak.

Fizdale grew tight with James when Fizdale was an assistant coach during the Miami Heat’s “Big 3” championship years. Fizdale said he considers James “family” and wishes his former player well — “just not against us.”

That presumably includes Sunday game — as the Knicks won for the first time in March after James had a potential game-winning shot blocked by Mario Hezonja — and the upcoming free-agency period, during which the Lakers and Knicks will be in fierce competition to sign the league’s best available players.

With the Knicks (14-56) all but tanking their season and the Lakers (31-39) having fallen quickly out of postseason contention, both teams are already positioning themselves to make a run at top talent with Fizdale being the chief recruiter for the Knicks and James ready to use all of his influence to beef up the Lakers roster.

“There’s a lot of great free agents this summer,” James said after scoring 33 points Sunday on 11-of-26 shooting. “I’m not going to name any names because every time I say something or our organization says something about a specific player, we get in trouble. But it’s great to know that you can get better from a personnel standpoint.”

It doesn’t help the Knicks that James will get an earlier start than usual. After going to eight straight NBA Finals, this will be the first season since 2004-2005 in which James won’t make the postseason, giving him extra time to heal his body and try to attract new teammates.

The Lakers’ disappointing turn also has caused some to question James’ motivation for the remainder of the season. During a timeout Sunday, James sat near the end of the Lakers bench away from the huddle, prompting MSG broadcaster and Knicks legend Walt “Clyde” Frazier to comment that James “doesn’t really care.” But James insists he does.

“It bothers me we didn’t close the game out,” he said. “Being the competitor I am, it bothers me I didn’t make enough plays down the stretch. It bothers me that I didn’t even get a shot up at the hoop. Of course that stuff bothers me.”

It should bother the NBA that two of its most storied franchises played an essentially meaningless game in March where all the focus already is on free agency and draft positioning. Still, Hezonja acted as if he just had won a Game 7 after reaching high with his right hand to block James’ shot with 2.3 seconds remaining. The defensive stand completed a 13-1 run by the Knicks over the final 3:45.

“We didn’t close out possessions,” James said. “We made them miss and they got offensive rebounds. We didn’t make enough shots down the stretch. We had all the chances in the world to win the game, but they made the shots down the stretch and won the game.”

It was like a rerun of a bad dream for the Lakers, who started the season 20-14.

“We had our chances,” James said. “We haven’t played well against a lot of teams — teams under .500, teams over .500. The lack of experience closing out games, you’ve got to have that. Tonight we had our group that got us the lead and then we just lost the lead. We couldn’t get enough timely buckets. But it’s been like that all year. It’s nothing different.”

Nothing will change for the Knicks or Lakers until the draft and free agency. That’s when Fizdale and James can’t be “family” anymore.

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