LeBron James creates more NBA history as Lakers eye West’s top tier

It is an awkward stretch of the season – just after the trade deadline and just before the All-Star break. Teams arrive battered and fatigued, already thinking about the pause that will offer relief, especially for those facing the toughest competitive demands once play resumes. The Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks fit that description, meeting for the third time this season. And for the third time – 3-0 – the Lakers prevailed, winning 124-104 to reach the break at 33-21.

What record has LeBron James set?

They sit a game and a half behind third place in the Western Conference, but only one and a half games ahead of seventh, the first play-in spot. Whether that glass is half full or half empty depends on perspective. Perhaps it is neither. There is also a curious parallel: last year the Lakers were exactly 33-21 after 54 games. Back then, however, LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Austin Reaves had combined to miss just 14 games. This time, James, Reaves and Luka Doncic have already totaled 46 absences. Seeing them together has been close to impossible – and any hope that this team becomes more than it has been over the past four months hinges on that changing.

It was Doncic’s fourth game back. The team has handled his muscle issues cautiously, and there is no certainty he will play in Sunday’s All-Star Game. The logical move, after these recent absences, would be to extend the rest and ensure he is fully recovered after the break. But with the event in Los Angeles – albeit at the Clippers’ Intuit Dome – the Slovenian could still make an appearance. The fact that his withdrawal has not been announced suggests that possibility. If he does play, it would likely be limited, especially with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander already out of the World team. When head coach JJ Redick was asked whether Doncic would be at the All-Star Game – and whether he should be – he offered the same reply both times: “Talking about that goes beyond my job title and my pay grade.”

Without Doncic, the Lakers have at least been practical. They won the night he went down, rallying impressively against the Philadelphia 76ers, and have handled the games they were expected to win – against a Stephen Curry-less Golden State Warriors and now against a Mavericks team mired in its first nine-game losing streak in 28 years. Dallas, at 19-35, holds the seventh-worst record in the NBA and has begun to look toward the draft – particularly the Cooper Flagg project – since it does not control its first-round picks from 2027 through 2030. Flagg himself is sidelined with a foot injury and will miss the Rising Stars opener to All-Star Weekend.

Dallas flagging without Cooper

Without him, Dallas offered little resistance in the second half, outscored 60-41. A 12-0 run to close the second quarter had pulled the Mavericks back into the game before halftime, and they even led 66-64 early in the third. But with Naji Marshall directing traffic and players such as Brandon Williams and former Laker Max Christie showing flashes in the backcourt, the most striking image is seeing veterans like Khris Middleton, Tyus Jones and Marvin Bagley in Mavericks uniforms. Klay Thompson, meanwhile, looks far removed from what he likely envisioned for the final stretch of his career when he signed in Dallas.

The Lakers have won the games they needed to without Doncic and lost the tougher ones – a back-to-back against the top two teams in the West. Against the Oklahoma City Thunder, even without Gilgeous-Alexander, they competed and led in the fourth quarter. Against the San Antonio Spurs, they rested James and Reaves, conceding one night to secure this one against Dallas. Overall, the team is in decent form, with seven wins in its past 11 games under complicated circumstances.

Reaves continues to ease back, coming off the bench again, playing fewer than 30 minutes and finishing with 18 points and six assists. Rui Hachimura added 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting, while Jaxson Hayes contributed 16 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals. If everyone becomes available, Los Angeles could assemble an intriguing rotation, with Marcus Smart, Jake LaRavia and Jarred Vanderbilt as defensive options, Maxi Kleber providing useful minutes at center, and offensive complements such as Hachimura and newcomer Luke Kennard.

LeBron and the oldest triple double

All of it revolves around the big three. As Doncic waits and Reaves works toward full minutes, James continues to defy time. In his 23rd season, on the verge of his 22nd All-Star appearance, at 41 years and 44 days old, he posted 28 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists – the oldest triple-double in NBA history. Another record added to a collection that seems nearly complete, surpassing the previous mark set by Karl Malone at 40 years and 127 days. James is averaging 21.2 points, five rebounds and 8.6 assists in February – at 41, after nearly a quarter-century in the league.

There will always be speculation about where and how he will play next season – perhaps not with the Lakers – and critics will note the things he can no longer do as he once did. But beyond the obvious, it is worth pausing to recognize just how extraordinary, how improbable, this remains. It may or may not be the greatest career in NBA history. There is certainly none quite like it. Yesterday, today and always.

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Los Angeles Lakers

Stats

28 Rui Hachimura
23 LeBron James
11 Jaxson Hayes
12 Jake LaRavia
36 Marcus Smart
18 Kobe Bufkin
9 Bronny James Jr.
10 Luke Kennard
14 Maxi Kleber
4 Dalton Knecht
15 Austin Reaves
1 Adou Thiero
17 Drew Timme
2 Jarred Vanderbilt

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF
28 Rui Hachimura	34	21	3	0	3	1	1	1	0	0/0	6/9	3/4	0	4
23 LeBron James	35	28	10	0	10	12	4	0	1	6/7	8/13	2/7	0	0
11 Jaxson Hayes	33	16	7	4	3	4	1	3	1	0/0	8/10	0/0	0	4
12 Jake LaRavia	25	11	3	2	1	2	2	0	0	3/3	4/5	0/1	0	2
36 Marcus Smart	25	9	2	0	2	6	0	1	1	0/0	3/5	1/9	0	2
18 Kobe Bufkin	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/1	0/0	0	0
9 Bronny James Jr.	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/1	0	0
10 Luke Kennard	17	9	7	1	6	3	0	1	0	2/2	2/2	1/2	0	2
14 Maxi Kleber	12	5	1	1	0	0	1	0	0	0/0	1/1	1/2	0	3
4 Dalton Knecht	1	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
15 Austin Reaves	28	18	4	1	3	6	2	0	0	7/9	4/7	1/3	0	2
1 Adou Thiero	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	1/1	0/0	0	0
17 Drew Timme	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
2 Jarred Vanderbilt	17	5	6	1	5	0	1	2	0	0/0	1/1	1/2	0	1

Dallas Mavericks

Stats

13 Naji Marshall
25 P.J. Washington
21 Daniel Gafford
0 Max Christie
10 Brandon Williams
35 Marvin Bagley III
8 AJ Johnson
1 Tyus Jones
20 Khris Middleton
7 Dwight Powell
31 Klay Thompson

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF
13 Naji Marshall	29	19	2	0	2	4	2	2	0	3/5	8/10	0/3	0	2
25 P.J. Washington	33	18	4	0	4	2	0	0	0	7/8	4/6	1/4	0	2
21 Daniel Gafford	27	2	6	2	4	1	2	0	1	0/0	1/2	0/0	0	3
0 Max Christie	30	19	1	0	1	4	1	1	0	3/4	5/8	2/4	0	3
10 Brandon Williams	29	17	5	1	4	7	4	1	0	4/5	5/8	1/3	0	0
35 Marvin Bagley III	20	7	4	0	4	0	0	1	0	1/2	3/6	0/1	0	3
8 AJ Johnson	3	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/1	0/0	0	0
1 Tyus Jones	18	3	0	0	0	3	1	1	0	0/0	0/0	1/3	0	2
20 Khris Middleton	20	8	1	0	1	1	1	0	0	1/1	2/6	1/5	0	3
7 Dwight Powell	3	2	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	1/1	0/0	0	0
31 Klay Thompson	23	9	3	0	3	0	4	1	0	0/0	3/5	1/3	0	0