On January 3, 2025, Beijing time, the NBA regular season saw the 18-win and 14-loss Lakers host the 11-win and 21-loss Trail Blazers. This was a must-win game for the Lakers, with Hayes returning but Davis and Vincent absent, significantly reducing their combat effectiveness. Could they defeat the Trail Blazers? The Lakers' starting lineup was Reeves + Christie + Hachimura + James + Hayes, while the Blazers were without Grant, starting with Simmons + Sharpe + Avdija + Kamara + Ayton.
In the first quarter, Hayes dunked, Sharpe responded with a three-pointer, Hachimura and James scored four points, putting the Lakers ahead 6-3. Ayton made a hook shot, Hachimura dunked, and the gap remained at three points. Simmons, Kamara, and Ayton then took the lead by three points. Reeves and Christie scored, but Sharpe and Avdija responded, giving the Blazers a four-point lead. Klock and Finney-Smith scored, but Sharpe and Henderson responded strongly, increasing the gap to eight points. Klock, Knickert, and James narrowed the gap to three points. Kamara dunked, Klock dunked, and Murray made one of two free throws. At the end of the first quarter, the Blazers led 31-27.
In the second quarter, Kling, Avdija, and Murray scored, while James continued to score, keeping the gap at four points. Avdija and Simmons scored, but Reeves made a mid-range shot and Christie hit two consecutive three-pointers, narrowing the gap to one point. Avdija scored again, but Hayes, Christie, and James scored in succession, giving the Lakers a four-point lead. Kamara and Sharpe scored, but James scored five points in a row, and Christie and Reeves also contributed, increasing the gap to nine points. At halftime, the Lakers led 60-51. James had 18 points at halftime, Christie had 14 points, Reeves had 7 points and 9 assists, and Sharpe had 14 points.
In the third quarter, Ayton dunked and Simmons made a mid-range shot, while Christie scored four points, maintaining a nine-point lead for the Lakers. Kamara and Simmons scored, but James hit two consecutive three-pointers, increasing the gap to ten points. Avdija and Simmons scored, but Christie, James, and Reeves helped the Lakers extend their lead to 13 points. Avdija and Kamara reduced the gap to six points, but Reeves and Milton extended it back to 13 points. Banton made a layup, and Klock made an alley-oop dunk. At the end of the third quarter, the Lakers led 88-75.
In the fourth quarter, Kling made two free throws, Reddish and James scored four points, giving the Lakers a 15-point lead. After a timeout, Kamara and Simmons scored, and Knickert made a putback, reducing the gap to 13 points. Henderson and Simmons narrowed the gap to eight points. After another timeout, James and Christie scored five points in a row, increasing the gap to 13 points. Sharpe, Avdija, and Simmons scored in succession, reducing the gap to four points with over three minutes left in the game. Christie dunked, Simmons made a three-pointer, reducing the gap to three points. James and Christie then increased the gap to seven points. Sharpe dunked, but James made a difficult three-pointer, increasing the gap to eight points with 59 seconds left in the game. Henderson scored four points in a row, reducing the gap to four points with 20 seconds left. James made a quick layup, Simmons missed a three-pointer, and Reeves made two free throws, ending the game with the Lakers defeating the Trail Blazers 114-106, achieving a comeback after trailing in the first quarter.
James scored 38 points with 15 out of 25 shots (7 out of 10 three-pointers), 3 rebounds, and 8 assists, tying Jordan's record for the most career games with 30+ points and ranking first in history. Christie scored a career-high 28 points with 9 out of 16 shots (5 out of 9 three-pointers), 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals. Reeves scored 15 points with 5 out of 15 shots, 8 rebounds, and 11 assists. Klock scored 8 points with 3 rebounds and 8 assists, and Hachimura scored 6 points with 4 rebounds.
Simmons scored 23 points with 8 out of 17 shots, 3 rebounds, and 5 assists. Avdija scored 19 points with 10 rebounds and 4 assists. Sharpe scored 19 points with 5 rebounds. Kamara scored 18 points with 4 rebounds and 3 assists. Henderson scored 12 points with 5 rebounds and 8 assists.
After the Lakers' victory, they surpassed the Clippers, who lost today, becoming sixth in the West, while the Clippers dropped to seventh.