Facing the Trail Blazers, who are third from the bottom in the West, the Lakers also found themselves in a tough battle, one reason being the absence of "Big Brow" Anthony Davis, their core frontcourt player. However, the Lakers managed to secure a victory without much trouble, with LeBron James showing his enduring prowess and Max Christie delivering the best performance of his career, giving the Lakers a good start to their back-to-back games.
Winning the game, the Lakers could be said to have experienced three pieces of good fortune. Firstly, two frontcourt players performed outstandingly, making up for the absence of Davis. Jackson Hayes made his comeback debut, playing only 18 minutes but with very high efficiency, contributing 4 points and 6 rebounds. After the game, Jackson Hayes told the media that he had never been absent for so long in his career, but he was happy to return to the court and help the Lakers win a game while performing well himself.
If Jackson Hayes is naturally impressive when healthy, Christian Kolok's performance in this game can be called a trump card. He scored 8 points and grabbed 8 rebounds. As a two-way contract player, Christian Kolok's original advantage lies in his strong defense, but in this game, he also made gains on the offensive end, grabbing as many as 6 offensive rebounds, giving the Lakers plenty of second-chance opportunities. Honestly, even if a typical benchwarmer occasionally performs like this, it's more than enough for the Lakers.
Furthermore, after completing a collaboration with the Nets, the Lakers' overall defense seems to have significantly improved. On one hand, D'Angelo Russell was originally an obvious weakness on the court, not because he didn't try hard, but because he was at a real disadvantage in height as a small guard. The returned Finney-Smith from the Nets may have average shooting and hasn't fully integrated into the tactical system, but his size and awareness allow him to play an important role defensively, which is particularly crucial for the Lakers.
Finally, despite the absence of "Big Brow" Anthony Davis, the Lakers' outside three-point shots rained down like arrows, which is quite rare in the past few seasons. LeBron James led by example, hitting 7 out of 10 three-pointers. In the twilight of his career, no one would have thought that LeBron James would become a sharpshooter. Additionally, Max Christie also had a heroic performance, and although the Lakers had fewer free throw attempts than their opponents, they did not waste any opportunities, with only LeBron James missing one. These details were done exceptionally well, ensuring the Lakers' victory.