Lakers defeat the struggling Raptors 128-111 behind 23 points from LeBron James, their seventh victory in eight games.

The Los Angeles Lakers won their eighth straight game on Tuesday night, defeating the Toronto Raptors 128-111 behind 23 points from LeBron James and 21 points and 12 rebounds from Anthony Davis.

Rui Hachimura scored 14, Max Christie scored 12, and D’Angelo Russell scored 25 points on 7 of 14 3-point attempts as the Lakers defeated Toronto for the 14th time in a row.

Leading scorer in the NBA history, James finished with nine assists and a 10 for 12 average.

James entered the game having made nine 3-pointers in Sunday’s victory against Brooklyn, matching his career high. With 5:22 remaining in the third quarter, the 20-time All-Star made his lone long shot against the Raptors.

When Los Angeles increased their lead to 27, 109-82, with 9:22 left in the game, James left the game, and Davis sat the whole fourth quarter. On Wednesday night, the Lakers play the Washington Wizards.

James expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to begin his postgame ritual early.

It really does help, he stated. “Every minute matters.” I was able to return here, do my prep and therapy, and begin getting my body ready for tomorrow night. Hopefully.

James and Davis should be available to play against the Wizards, who defeated Milwaukee on Tuesday night, according to Lakers coach Darvin Ham.

“I’m sure they’ll play, but we’ll see how they feel when they wake up in the morning,” Ham stated.

In five of his last six encounters with Toronto, James has scored 20 points or more.

The Raptors’ head coach Darko Rajakovic described him as “just so elite.” “It’s incredible to watch a player play at this level at this age, having spent 20 years in the NBA.” It was unlike anything we had ever seen.

For the Raptors, RJ Barrett scored 28 points, while Immanuel Quickley chipped in with 20. In 1997–98, Toronto suffered a franchise-worst 17 straight losses.

While Barrett and Quickley returned after missing time for personal reasons and reconditioning, Gary Trent Jr. of Toronto sat to rest. After scoring 17 points in total in the first quarter, the Lakers went on an 18-4 run to take a 34-25 lead at the half.

At the half, Los Angeles was ahead 64–58. The Lakers increased their lead to 100-79 at the half thanks to nine points apiece from James and Davis in the third quarter.

Regarding his halftime speech, Ham remarked, “We challenged the guys.” “They had a strong defensive third quarter in response.”

Five players were still out for the Raptors, including starting guards Scottie Barnes and Jakob Poeltl. Jontay Porter, a two-way player from Toronto, missed his fifth straight game due to unresolved gambling-related charges.

Due to a right knee ailment, Raptors guard Bruce Brown left the game in the fourth.

Due to personal reasons, Lakers forward Cam Reddish was not available, while guard Gabe Vincent missed the first night of the back-to-back games while recovering from surgery on his left knee.