Sharpe Powers Trail Blazers Past Lakers, 132–116, as Doncic Sits Out.

PORTLAND, Ore. — Shaedon Sharpe scored 25 points to lift the Portland Trail Blazers to a 132–116 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night, as Los Angeles played without its leading scorer, Luka Doncic. Jerami Grant and Caleb Love each contributed 22 points for Portland, which continued its strong stretch by winning seven of its last nine games. Marcus Smart led the Lakers with 25 points but exited midway through the fourth quarter after appearing to suffer an injury and did not return. The severity of the injury was not immediately known. LeBron James recorded 20 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists for Los Angeles, while Drew Timme added 21 points off the bench. Doncic, who leads the NBA with an average of 33.6 points per game, was sidelined due to soreness in his left groin. Head coach JJ Redick said prior to tipoff that an MRI showed no structural damage and that Doncic is considered day-to-day. He had scored 39 points in the Lakers’ loss to Charlotte on Thursday. The Lakers were also without center Deandre Ayton, who missed the game because of left knee soreness. Portland continued to play without its own leading scorer, Deni Avdija, who missed his third straight game with a back injury. Avdija had been averaging 26.1 points per contest. The Trail Blazers built a 14-point lead in the first half and went into halftime ahead 71–61. The Moda Center crowd reacted loudly when James finished a dunk late in the second quarter to pull the Lakers within six.

In the third quarter, James set up Smart for a three-pointer that cut the deficit to eight, but Sharpe quickly responded with a dunk to halt the momentum. Portland later expanded its lead to as many as 24 points, prompting Redick to rest James with 5:40 remaining.

The Lakers will return home to face Toronto on Sunday, while the Trail Blazers travel to Atlanta to take on the Hawks on Monday night.