On December 29, Beijing time, the Lakers defeated the Rockets 132-123 away from home to end a five-game losing streak. The Lakers' change of lineup was effective in this battle, with 4 players cutting down 20+. James had a triple-double of 32 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, Westbrook had 24 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, and Starter Munch had 25 points and two rebounds. Anthony came off the bench and had 24 points and nine rebounds. The Lakers' four-star battle shines, and James and Westbrook team up to brush up the record.
James' career total scores exceeded the 36,000-point mark, becoming the youngest Mr. 36,000 in history. The top two scorers in history are Malone (36,928) and Abdul-Jabbar (38,387).
James has played a triple-double for the third time this season and the 102nd time in his career. Westbrook has played a triple-double for the seventh time this season and the 191st in his career. James and Westbrook are both triple-doubles masters, and this is the first time they have played a triple-double since they joined forces.
James finished first with a 30+ triple-double for the fifth time since he was 35, while the rest of the league has only played triple-doubles twice since he was 35.
The Lakers changed again, starting from Westbrook, Munch, Bradley, Stanley Johnson and James. James became the starting center, and in the 2019-20 season James was the starting point guard.
This season's Lakers are keen to use small lineups, and Howard and Jordan Jr. are both pinned on the bench. The five-squad can open up space and speed up the pace of attack, but at the cost of weak interior defense. The Lakers scored 123 points for the Rockets, including 30+ points in three quarters.
The Lakers led by 8 points 67-59 in the first half, and the Rockets launched a ferocious counterattack in the third quarter, once surpassing the Lakers. However, in the final 1 minute of the third quarter, Anthony scored with a dunk, Stanley Johnson scored on a layup, Anderson threw in a three-pointer, and the Lakers took the initiative in one fell swoop, leading by five points.
In the last quarter of the game, the Lakers blossomed more, and in the last minute, James and Westbrook killed the game in three consecutive connections. Westbrook passed the ball to James with 100 seconds left in the game, who made two foul throws. After the Rockets missed the offense, Wei Shao assisted Zhan Huang to score a dunk against Wood. Westbrook then assisted James to score on a layup.
The connection between James and Westbrook has increased, which is something that the Lakers are happy to see.