LeBron James powers shorthanded Lakers to win over Warriors

SAN FRANCISCO — Fans from New Zealand and Australia waved signs at the camera, proclaiming they had traveled thousands of miles to watch the Warriors star. Stéphane Curry play.

On one sign, “play” was crossed out and replaced with a scowling face.

LeBron James instead gave fans a glimpse of a generational star, leading the Lakers to one Victory 119-103 against the Warriors on Thursday with 26 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds.

After missing the Lakers’ final game, the 21-time All-NBA player returned as a guiding force in the midst of a season threatening to go off the rails. The Lakers (51-29) ended a three-game losing streak and kept pace with the Houston Rockets in a tight race for home-court advantage in the Western Conference.

“We just had a sour taste in our mouths, obviously, last week,” James said, referring to injuries to stars Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves and the recent skid. “…And none of us want to keep losing, and then we suffered for our two main weapons. So just a mindset of just trying to figure out how we can be great as a team, how we can figure out how to play well on the road and try to win.”

Trying to avoid their longest losing streak of the season, the Lakers relied on James to steady the ship. After the Lakers gave up a 9-0 run to start the second quarter, he called a contested timeout three times to get them back on track. He gave the ball to Deandre Ayton, keeping the big man engaged for 21 points on nine-of-11 shooting with five rebounds.

Luke Kennard had 14 points and eight assists. The sharp shooting guard has made 28 assists in the last three games, adapting to the team’s emergency point guard to make up for the loss of Doncic and Reaves.

“Talking as a group this morning like that, that’s what we have right now, and we need to understand that,” Kennard said. “We’re trying to win games. We’ve worked really hard to get where we are, to be in the position we’re in right now, and we don’t want to just blow it.”

Lakers star LeBron James shoots during a win over the Golden State Warriors on Thursday.

(David M. Barreda / Los Angeles Times)

Losing James to a lingering left foot injury before Tuesday’s loss to the Thunder added to an emotional week for the Lakers. They lost Doncic and Reaves in a blowout loss at Oklahoma City on April 2 and had to face the NBA’s best team without their Big 3. Jaxson Hayes also didn’t play Tuesday and remains day-to-day after also missing Thursday’s game.

Lakers coach JJ Redick admitted the Lakers weren’t ready to compete on Tuesday. He later acknowledged that an effort to inject some energy into his players by calling early timeouts and replacing veterans such as Rui Hachimura and Jarred Vanderbilt didn’t help, especially after a heated exchange with Vanderbilt was caught on video.

“What I told the team today — I think it’s important — is that we had a very disjointed season because of all the injuries and throughout the year we — collectively, the staff, the players — had to figure out the best path forward with whatever group was available,” Redick said. “And it’s no different right now. We have to find, over these next three games and next week, the best path for this team to play winning basketball.”

Through emotional ups and downs, Redick communicates daily with Reaves and Doncic. Doncic, who is receiving treatment for his left hamstring injury in Spain, is in “relatively — relatively good spirits,” Redick said. Doncic is “attacking” his rehab, Redick said, but being away from the team has taken a toll on his psyche. Reaves, who is dealing with a Grade 2 left oblique strain that is expected to take four to six weeks to heal, has benefited from his time on the team.

“I think for those two guys, there’s like a carrot,” Redick said. “If we can extend this season, they can come back and play. These guys love playing basketball.”

Houston won its eighth straight game Thursday to stay tied with the Lakers for fourth. Both teams have two games left and the Lakers have the head-to-head tiebreaker.

The difference between finishing fourth and fifth is home-field advantage in the first round of the playoffs, but James wouldn’t entertain any discussion about playoff scheduling.

“What the future holds, we have no idea,” James said, “and obviously the past is the past. So what we can focus on is how we continue to improve every day.”

Lakers guard Bronny James looks to pass under pressure from Golden State’s LJ Cryer, left, and Charles Bassey during the second quarter Thursday.

(David M. Barreda / Los Angeles Times)

James gave his teammates a scare in the third quarter when he injured his right hand on a chase block. He looked swollen as he walked to the bench. Kennard also walked away from the play holding his left hand after attempting to push the ball away from the Warriors’ Pat Spencer. Redick joked that the scene required him to turn off his Amazon Prime broadcast microphone for several seconds.

But James returned three minutes from the end of the third quarter. He wouldn’t give his team a reason to worry just yet.

“His leadership throughout the day, in the meeting, in the presentation this morning, just the way he carried himself,” Redick said, “he really set the tone for the team.”

Dealing with a chronic knee injury in the latter stages of the season, Curry watched from the bench. His absence from the Warriors’ final home game of the season also put a damper on what could have been another exciting matchup between two of the NBA’s biggest stars.

Between Curry’s artistry and James’ physicality, they have been faces of the league, Redick said. But with James, 41, out of contract after this season, the generational stars would never be able to compete on an NBA court again.

Redick called the idea “dark.”

“It’s been fun to watch as a fan,” Redick said of the Curry-James rivalry, “and it’s been fun to be a part of it the last couple of years.”

Curry greeted James before the game. Now a sneaker free agent following his high-profile departure from longtime sponsor Under Armour, Curry honored his contemporary with a blue and yellow version of the LeBron X iD sneakers.