It was the return of the King.
LeBron James made his anticipated return to the floor, helping the Los Angeles Lakers score a season-high for points in a 140-126 win over the Utah Jazz at Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday, Nov. 18.
James missed the Lakers’ first 14 games of the season while dealing with a sciatica nerve issue that dated back to training camp. That health situation appears to be in the past, as James practiced Monday ahead of playing 30 minutes in the Lakers’ victory Tuesday night.
Lakers vs. Jazz highlights
End Q4: Lakers 140, Jazz 125
Feeding off of that momentum in the third quarter, the Lakers put the Utah Jazz away. At one point, early in the fourth quarter, the Lakers were on an extended 41-17 run.
And LeBron James picked up the play-making late in his regular season debut, dishing out six assists in the fourth quarter, all of which came on consecutive made field goals. James finished the game with 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting, with 12 assists and 3 rebounds. James played 29:37 and even got to see his son, Bronny James, drain a deep 3.
Luka Dončić was also exceptional, dropping 37 points — including 17 in the third quarter — with 10 assists and 5 rebounds.
The Lakers will play the Jazz again in their next game, though it will come after an extended rest, on Sunday, Nov. 23, in Utah.
End Q3: Lakers 104, Jazz 93
Los Angeles came out far more aggressively to start the second half, looking to push pace and be more intentional with its shot selection.
The Lakers swarmed Utah late in the third quarter to take their first lead of the game — a lead they extended behind Luka Dončić’s 17 points in the third quarter. In fact, the Lakers closed the period on an 21-5 run.
Perhaps setting him up to be available for most of the fourth quarter, LeBron James got an extended rest in the middle of the third as the Lakers mounted their run.
Through three, James has 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting, with 6 assists and 2 rebounds.
End Q2: Jazz 71, Lakers 67
The disjointed Los Angeles offense continued in the second quarter.
In particular, the Lakers struggled from beyond the arc, where they shot just 6-of-18 (33.3%) in the first half. That inefficiency slowed down the entire operation, as the Lakers are trying to find how to fit in LeBron James, who is making his season debut.
James played 17:05 minutes in the first half and scored 7 points on 2-of-4 shooting. He took on a more complementary role, deferring to Luka Dončić and allowing Dončić to operate with the ball in his hands.
James did create plays for his teammates, however, dishing out 4 assists, which was second to Dončić’s 6 on the team. James also collected a pair of rebounds and went 2-of-3 from 3-point range.
End Q1: Jazz 36, Lakers 27
The Lakers continued to struggle with LeBron James on the floor, though they went on a 16-9 run while he sat on the bench.
As soon as he reentered the game, James pushed the pace in transition off an inbounds, slashed into the paint and kicked out a pass in the corner to forward Jake LaRavia, who knocked down L.A.’s first 3 of the game. That was his second assist of the game.
Los Angeles then continued to struggle to find offensive rhythm, turning the ball over. The Jazz ended the quarter on an 11-5 run, and James finished the period with a plus/minus of -14, lowest in the game.
The Jazz took a 36-27 lead into the second quarter.
Early impressions from LeBron James’ debut
If the Lakers got any emotional boost from having James back on the floor, it wasn’t immediately obvious.
Los Angeles started slowly, missing seven of their 10 shot attempts and all four from 3-point range. James appeared to be patient, looking for ways to factor into the offense. He was mostly deferential to Luka Dončić, passing the ball to him and allowing him to bring it up the floor.
LeBron’s first recorded statistic of the season was a turnover, which occurred when he fired an inbounds pass across the paint in a miscommunication; the ball skipped out of bounds.
James missed his only early attempt before heading to the bench, an open 3 point attempt from the right wing that clanked off the front rim. He also recorded his first assist of the season, after he fired a pass to center Deandre Ayton, who had cut into the paint and put up a push shot.
At the first media timeout, after 5:26 had elapsed in the first quarter, James took his first rest.
Will LeBron James be on a minutes restriction vs. the Jazz?
Lakers coach JJ Redick did not offer any specifics on a potential minutes restriction on James, but the team is expected to monitor James’ condition throughout the game. On Monday, Nov. 17, after his first full practice with the Lakers, James said his lungs “felt like a newborn baby” and added that he would have to work his way back into game shape.
Last season, James averaged 34.9 minutes per game.
Watch LeBron James warm up before his season debut
LeBron James took the court for his regular pregame warmups and all eyes were on the King.
What was LeBron James’ injury?
James had been dealing with a sciatica nerve issue that sidelined him during training camp and forced him to miss the first 14 games of the regular season.
The Lakers, however, behind the stellar play of guards Dončić and Austin Reaves, have been competitive and are 10-4, which ranked fourth in the Western Conference headed into Tuesday’s game.
James was away from the team during its most recent road trip, but he spent the week practicing with the South Bay Lakers, the franchise’s G League affiliate. As part of those sessions, James participated in full, five-on-five contact and did not experience any setbacks. James did not play in any G League games, but he rejoined the Lakers when they returned from Milwaukee early Sunday morning, following their 119-95 victory against the Bucks.
Then, on Monday, Nov. 17, for the first time all season, James was a full participant in a practice with the Lakers.
“As expected,” James told reporters Monday after the practice session. “My lungs felt like a newborn baby. I gotta get my lungs back to a grown man and my voice is already gone. One day back and barking out calls and assignments and stuff — getting my voice working again. It will be a lot of tea and rest tonight. It feels good, feels good to be out here with the guys.”
Redick had said after the practice that James was still “TBD” for Tuesday’s game against the Jazz. James added that his availability would depend on how his body responded to the practice session and subsequent treatments he would undergo prior to tipoff.
“We’ve been taking literally one minute, one hour, one step at a time throughout this whole process,” James said. “We’ll see how I feel this afternoon, we’ll see how I feel tonight, when I wake up in the morning — we’ll probably have shoot-around, so we’ve just got to see how the body responds over the next 24 hours-plus.”
After Monday’s practice, the Lakers had officially listed James as questionable on the injury report.
James, who will turn 41 in late December, has remained one of the most consistent and productive players in the NBA, despite his age. Last season, he averaged 24.4 points, 8.2 assists and 7.8 rebounds per game in 70 appearances and finished sixth in MVP voting.