Dazzling Dennis Schroder stepped up to the plate in the absence of superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis, scoring an impressive 26 points to propel the Los Angeles Lakers to a 123-117 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder Wednesday.
Also missing D'Angelo Russell (sprained right ankle), the Lakers needed a balanced offensive effort, and they got it to win for the fourth time in five games.
Five other Lakers players scored in double figures, and four players hit at least three 3-pointers, including four from Troy Brown Jr.
James missed his second consecutive game with a foot injury that is expected to keep him sidelined for several weeks.
Davis sat out with a stress injury in his right foot. He sustained a fractured bone spur and stress reaction in that foot earlier this season and missed 20 games.
Before the game, Lakers coach Darvin Ham said keeping Davis out was "precautionary."
Early, it looked like Schroder's night could be a short one.
He turned his ankle badly in the first quarter but remained in the game.
It wasn't just the ankle that gave Schroder problems early. He was just 1 of 7 from the floor in the first half, going into halftime with four points.
But Schroder came alive in the second half, scoring 10 points in the third quarter and 12 more in the fourth to help lift the Lakers. Schroder went 7 of 11 from the floor in the second half.
Brown and Austin Reaves added 19 points each for Los Angeles.
The Lakers jumped out to a big lead early, leading 28-16 late in the first before the Thunder closed with a 14-3 run – which included a pair of Isaiah Joe 3-pointers – in the final 2:28 to cut the deficit to one.
The Thunder were without All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for the fourth consecutive game with an abdominal strain. Gilgeous-Alexander also remains in the league's health and safety protocol.
Kenrich Williams also missed the game for Oklahoma City with a left wrist sprain.
The Thunder have lost five consecutive games, tying their longest skid of the season.
Jalen Williams led Oklahoma City with 24 points and chipped in seven assists, while Josh Giddey added 22 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds.
