LeBron James Los Angeles Lakers
LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers dunks against the Portland Trail Blazers in the first quarter of their game at Moda Center on October 18, 2018 in Portland, Oregon. Steve Dykes/Getty Images

LeBron James’ regular-season debut with the Los Angeles Lakers didn’t go quite as he hoped as L.A. lost on the road to the Portland Trail Blazers 128-119. While the team is still searching for its first win, the NBA’s best player did have plenty of individual success.

James is wearing a new uniform, but his stats were similar to the numbers we’ve become accustomed to seeing. The four-time MVP put up 26 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in 37 minutes. James made nine of his 16 field-goal attempts, though he did commit six turnovers in defeat.

It wasn’t a perfect game for James, and it was clear at times that he needs to spend more time gelling with his new teammates. Two of James’ turnovers were passes to no one when he seemingly thought someone would be in the area. He missed all four of his three-point attempts, and the Lakers’ lack of three-point shooting might have been the biggest reason for Thursday’s loss.

James looked more energized on the defensive end than he did all of last season. His first two points as a Laker came off a steal that led to a wide-open dunk. James scored 13 points in the first quarter, and L.A. led Portland 27-22 when he went to the bench for the first time.

The Lakers were outscored when James left the game, and the Blazers entered the second quarter on a 12-4 run. The Cleveland Cavaliers constantly lost ground on their opponent when James was on the bench last season. James ended Thursday’s game with a plus-minus of minus-four. All four Lakers that played more than two minutes off the bench were minus-12 or worse.

Rajon Rondo was a plus-seven as the Lakers’ starting point guard, recording 13 points, 11 assists and four rebounds in 32 minutes. Josh Hart scored 20 points on 12 shots off the bench.

Maybe it won’t happen when they host the Houston Rockets Saturday night in their 2018-2019 home opener, but the Lakers will start winning games soon enough. Even in a difficult Western Conference, Los Angeles will be among the best teams if James consistently approaches a triple-double. Coming off the best postseason of his career, there’s little reason to believe that won’t be the case.

James has averaged at least 25.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game each year since his second NBA season. He’s shot better than 50 percent from the field in nine of his last 10 seasons.

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