LeBron James and the Lakers are finding belief once again

Its been a torrid time for the Lakers recently, but with their win against the Cavs could it be that LeBron James and co. have turned a corner?

The Los Angeles Lakers get back to winning ways

On Monday night the Lakers managed to end their four-game road trip on a high. In what has largely been a forgettable season for the star studded Lakers, the boys in yellow and purple emerged victorious over the Cleveland Cavaliers by a score of 131-120. LeBron James who was of course facing his former team, was in a much more positive mood in comparison to recent days. "I'm literally having the time of my life right now," James said. "The game's such a beautiful thing." Where the Lakers prospects are concerned, they are currently 9th in the Western Conference with a one game lead over the New Orleans Pelicans and 10 games left in the regular season.

LeBron James still believes in the Lakers

For his part LeBron was in sensational form on Monday night, as he posted 38 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds. Incidentally the victory took his record against his former team to 17-1 - not a good look Cleveland. With that said, James is well aware of the challenge facing his team, however, one can imagine that a man who has won four NBA championships and been to the finals on multiple occasions, such things are part of the territory.  "Because I couldn't care less what the narrative about our team is," James said. "At my point in my career, I don't get involved in that stuff. I don't read about it, I don't hear it too much. ...None of that stuff matters to me, I'm having a blast playing the game of basketball."

For more from the NBA

Lakers head coach Frank Vogel also gave his thoughts post game, as he alluded to James' leadership being a key ingredient in keeping the team competitive, despite a string of poor results. "This is a league that when things don't go the right way, it's not a pleasant thing to be around," Vogel said. "This team has not let go of the rope and the biggest, No. 1 reason is because of how he's played and how he's led and what he represents in terms of having confidence about where we can ultimately get to."

Lebron James passed Karl Malone, but what about 'that dunk?'

For those in attendance on Monday night there was also a bit of history on show. James posted the third triple-double of his career against his former team. Indeed, the Cleveland faithful actually responded with a standing ovation from the crowd when the videoboard displayed that he had infact surpassed former Utah Jazz star Karl Malone to become the NBA's No.2 all-time scorer. Of course LeBron responded in the way one could expect, with a  stunning dunk on his old teammate Kevin Love. "To be completely honest, I hated that it had to be him," James said with a smile. "He's my guy. That's my brother. And I hope I'm still invited to [Love's] wedding. That's not even in my all-time dunks so I'll take it out. I didn't mean it. K-Love, I love you and I take it back. I wish I could take those two points back and we still win the game by nine."

The Lakers have found inspiration again

While the focus was understandably on LeBron James, as he was returning to his old house, the reality is the Lakers looked the part on Monday night. The often criticized Russell Westbrook for example, contributed with 20 points and 11 assists alongside another 20 from D.J. Augustin who incidentally went 7-for-7 shooting. Speaking on the team's performance Augustin was postive, "Internally, we feel like we're a great team and we can do something special," he said. "Make a run. Get into the playoffs. And make a run in the playoffs. And as long as we believe in each other, it doesn't matter what anybody else thinks." Westbrook also echoed his teammate's view as he spoke of the pleasure of silencing the doubters. "Nothing better than shutting people up," he said.

Though the Lakers can be afforded this moment to celebrate, reality will no doubt bite back soon enough. At present there are 10 games left to play and of that number six are on the road. "I'm going to play with a lot of passion, a lot of energy, give my teammates what they deserve, what they need and like I said for the rest of the season hopefully I can stay somewhat injury-free," James said. "Obviously, I'm dealing with a few injuries right now, but I'm working through it and we're working through it and that's all that matters. We leave everything on the floor and control what you can control and what you can't you don't worry about. Just my mindset."