SAN ANTONIO — LeBron James was in a very good mood before the Los Angeles Lakers’ game Friday night, his happiness coming from his return to the court against the San Antonio Spurs after having missed the previous five because of a strained left adductor.
James had watched the Lakers go 3-2 in his absence, with Anthony Davis becoming a force while dropping at least 30 points in four of the games and averaging 17.4 rebounds over those five games. James saw Patrick Beverley miss his first of a three-game suspension without pay for shoving Suns center Deandre Ayton during a loss at Phoenix on Tuesday night. Dennis Schroder started in place of Beverley.
Although the Lakers lost their way in the third quarter when letting a 20-point lead drop to three early in the fourth, James and the Lakers got their groove back to pull out a 105-94 win over the Spurs at AT&T Center. It was the Lakers’ first road win of the season after six losses.
