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The affect of "Taco Tuesday" on LeBron James

Date: May 25, 2020

By: Jorie Mickens

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Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP Photo

While the origins of Taco Tuesday are unknown, NBA superstar LeBron James revitalized the term this past year.

James began sharing social media posts of his family’s weekly taco dinners in 2019, after his move to the Los Angeles Lakers. Tacos and Los Angeles go hand in hand, according to articles from NBC San Diego and LA Weekly, Taco Tuesday is a habitual custom in the beach cities of South California. Similar to Happy Hour, restaurants vary in their participation of Taco Tuesday, but many restaurants will often offer tacos for as little as $1.

The first reported use of the phrase was on Aug. 20, 1973. In an edition of the Rapid City Journal, the daily newspaper of Rapid City, South Dakota, the Snow White Drive-in said, “Stop in on Taco Tuesday.” The Snow White Drive-In was a local drive-in restaurant in Rapid City that has since closed as franchise restaurants have taken over the city.

In 1982, Gregory’s Restaurant and Bar in Somers Point, New Jersey was issued the first trademark of the term, but in 1989, the Wyoming-based fast-food chain Taco John’s was issued the trademark and has held it for the past 30 years. James filed a trademark of the term in Aug. 2019, but was denied a few days later by the United States Patent and Trade Office. According to the New York Times, they stated that Taco Tuesday was a “a commonplace term, message or expression widely used by a variety of sources that merely conveys an ordinary, familiar, well-recognized concept or sentiment.”

With some of Taco Tuesday’s history now covered, let’s look at how the traditional Mexican dish helps and hinders James on the court.

James played nine Wednesday games before the 2019-20 season was suspended. On Tuesday nights, James served his family tortillas, beef, chicken, cheese, salsa and guacamole. The following day, James seemingly remained in the giving mood, as he averaged 11.7 assists per game on Wednesdays, the second most of any day of the week.

James also played the most minutes of any day of the week on Wednesdays (35.8). Since corn tortillas are easy to digest, and chicken and fish are full of protein, calcium, and other nutrients, the tacos gave James the endurance to play on average, three full quarters in his Wednesday games.

James scored less than his season average of 25.7 points per game on Wednesday nights (24.8), but he did have two 30-point Wednesday games. James’ shooting percentages were also relatively poor. James shot just 22 percent from three on Wednesdays and his true shooting percentage of 52 percent was the worst of any day of the week. Maybe the margaritas and wine are to blame for James’ poor efficiency.

James’ teammate Anthony Davis joined James, James’ wife, Savannah, and friends for Taco Tuesday earlier this year on Feb. 18. Three days later, James and Davis combined for 60 points, 25 rebounds, 18 assists and nine blocks in their 12-point win over the Memphis Grizzlies.

If the entire Lakers team had a Taco Tuesday dinner at the James’ household, there is reason to believe the team could score 200 points in a game. James was also 7-2 in his nine Wednesday games this season, with the only two losses coming on Christmas Day against the Los Angeles Clippers, and a one-point loss to the Orlando Magic, which Davis did not play in, after James missed a game-tying three with five seconds remaining in the game.

Overall, Taco Tuesday has served James well this season. And even with the on-going coronavirus pandemic, James shared with the world that he is still carrying out the tradition.

The post served as a reminder that even during this time of adversity, we need to remain positive and optimistic about defeating the invisible enemy. With the NBA’s restart plans supposedly coming in about a week, it is only a matter of time until we have sports to divert our attention from the distressing news cycle.

Be smart, remain safe, and don’t forget to celebrate Taco Tuesdayyyyy!

Jorie Mickens is an Assistant Sports Director for WSOU Sports and can be reached at jorie.mickens@student.shu.edu.

Posted in: Sports, WSOU

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