SALT LAKE CITY —
LeBron James sat at the end of the Lakers’ bench with a hoodie covering his head, pain in his left ankle not allowing him to play against the Utah Jazz on Saturday, just the fourth game he has missed this season.
It meant the struggling Lakers had to push forward against a surging Jazz team that was riding a four-game winning streak and had won eight of its last 10 games.
It also meant the player starting in place of James, D’Angelo Russell, had to fill a major void.