Los Angeles Lakers struggle without LeBron James: Golden State Warriors win easily as Stephen Curry makes history

A rematch of the 2023 Western Conference Semifinals was not as competitive as expected, mostly because superstar LeBron James did not suit up tonight. Anthony Davis did all that he could for his team, but overall, Stephen Curry was too much to handle, as he led the Golden State Warriors to a 128-110 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers at the Chase Center.

A few weeks ago, it was rumored that the Warriors tried to acquire 4-time champion LeBron James at the trade deadline, but the Lakers were not interested. There’s history between Golden State and the King, as their NBA Finals series dominated the latter half of the 2010s back when the 20-time All-Star played for his hometown team, the Cleveland Cavaliers.

While nothing came to fruition, it would have broke the internet if superstars and longtime rivals Stephen Curry and LeBron James teamed up. These 2 players are arguably both top 10 all-time and their games compliment each other beautifully. Alas, nothing transpired and they are still competitors in a loaded Western Conference.

The all-time 3-point leader had a game high 32 points with 8 assists and 6 made three pointers. He became the first player in franchise history to reach 6,000 regular season assists. Former All-Star Andrew Wiggins scored 20 points while Draymond Green finished with 8 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. Klay Thompson struggled off the bench, ending with 3 points on 11% shooting.

For the Lakers, Defensive Player of the Year candidate Anthony Davis stepped up in the absence of James, as he finished the game with 27 points, 15 rebounds, and 3 blocks on 58% shooting. D’Angelo Russell had 18 points and 9 assists while Austin Reaves scored 16 points. Taurean Prince contributed with 12 points.

This win improves the Warriors to 28-26, which makes them 10th in the Western Conference. Golden State is now 4 games behind the 6th seeded Mavericks for the last guaranteed playoff spot and 3.5 games above the 11th seeded Jazz for the last play-in spot. They are rolling, as they won 8 of their last 10 games and are currently on a 2-game winning streak. Their next game will be tomorrow night against the Charlotte Hornets.

Meanwhile, this loss drops the Lakers to 30-27, which makes them 9th in the Western Conference. Los Angeles is now 0.5 games above the Warriors, meaning if the regular season ended today, they would still get to host the first play-in matchup. They are 6-4 over their last 10 games and will look to bounce back tomorrow night against the San Antonio Spurs, with the hopes of LeBron returning for this matchup.