Los Angeles @ Golden State preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 8, 2020 ) L.A. Lakers 125, Golden State 120

LeBron James became the first player to score 40 points in a game at age 35 or older since Kobe Bryant's final game (60 in 2016) on Tuesday and continues to lead his team to victories. James will try to guide the Western Conference-best Lakers to a sixth consecutive victory when they visit the West-worst Golden State Warriors on Thursday.

James finished with a season-high 40 points on 17-of-27 shooting, eight rebounds and six assists in a 118-109 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday as Los Angeles picked up its 20th win over the last 25 games. "He's delivering special performances for us all season," Lakers coach Frank Vogel told reporters of James. "We don't take it for granted. We are where we are in large part of what he does on a night in, night out basis." The Warriors are losers of seven in a row overall and seven straight at home after dropping a 112-94 home decision to the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday while going 4-of-28 from 3-point range. That percentage from deep should improve with the return of star guard Stephen Curry (broken hand) on Sunday, but fellow splash brother Klay Thompson (knee) will miss the rest of the season and former All-Star Draymond Green (pelvis) is day-to-day.

TIME: 10:30 p.m. ET. TV: TNT, Spectrum SportsNet, TSN5

ABOUT THE LAKERS (44-12): James is not the only star in Los Angeles and forward Anthony Davis continued to make his case for Defensive Player of the Year while collecting 21 points, 14 rebounds and six blocked shots on Tuesday. Davis totaled 15 blocked shots in the three games since the All-Star break and made his presence felt on the defensive end Tuesday while struggling to 6-of-21 from the floor at the other end. Picking up some of the slack on offense Tuesday was shooting guard Danny Green, who scored 17 points and went 5-of-9 from 3-point range after totaling 14 points in the previous four contests.

ABOUT THE WARRIORS (12-46): Golden State is using the rest of the season to find the players that will fit around Curry, Thompson, Green and Andrew Wiggins next season and is developing a solid big man in forward Marquese Chriss. The 22-year-old recorded his second double-double in three games with team highs of 21 points and 12 rebounds on Tuesday and is averaging 15.4 points on 61.3 percent shooting in eight games this month. "I thought Marquese was great again," Warriors coach Steve Kerr told reporters after Tuesday's win. "He's strung together a really good couple of months here for us, and he's playing with a lot of energy and confidence."

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Lakers SG Avery Bradley went 0-of-8 from the floor, including 0-of-7 from beyond the arc, in a scoreless performance on Tuesday.

2. Warriors SG Jordan Poole is 7-of-32 from 3-point range over the last five contests.

3. Los Angeles took the first two meetings, including a 125-120 victory at Golden State on Feb. 8.

PREDICTION: Lakers 118, Warriors 106