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SALT LAKE CITY — LeBron James didn't come to Salt Lake City Wednesday.
Turns out, the Los Angeles Lakers didn't need him.
The Los Angeles Lakers ended the third quarter on a 24-8 run on their way to a 138-122 victory over the Jazz at the Delta Center, and the Jazz dropped to 26-29 and are 0-3 since the trade deadline.
Anthony Davis had 37 points and 15 rebounds, and Rui Hachimura finished with 36 points on 13-for-19 shooting for the Lakers.
"Hachimura, honestly, was really the difference," Jazz coach Will Hardy said.
James sure seemed to agree.
"Lil bro going CRAZY tonight!!!!! YEEEAAAHHHH RUUUUUU," he posted on social media late in the contest.
At least James was part of the discourse about the game.
In a weird coincidence — or is it a coincidence? — James has only played in Utah three times since joining the Lakers before the 2018-19 season. Los Angeles has played at the Delta Center nine times during that span, including Wednesday's victory.
That has left some fans a bit frustrated.
"The ticket prices are still sky high," one fan posted on social media.
"LeBron's always dodging us," wrote another supporter.
"He's letting down half the arena's fans!" quipped another fan.
That last comment, at least on Wednesday, was close to being true. At the end of the contest, the Delta Center echoed with loud "Let's go Lakers!" chants.
To be fair, there have been plenty of reasons for why James hasn't shown up in Salt Lake City. In 2018-19, he was injured; in 2019-20, one of Utah's "home" games was in the bubble in Orlando.
During the 2020-21 season, the Lakers only made one trip to Utah (he played). The next season, again, the Lakers had just one game in Utah (he was injured).
In 2022-23, he missed one game due to injury and played in the other (he scored 37 points and hit the game-winner in a triple-overtime classic).
James missed both — last month's game in Utah and Wednesday's contest due to a sore ankle, which is something the Lakers have monitored most of the season.
"A lot of collaborating and communicating. We have a plan and sticking to it," Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. "Tonight was an excused absence."
The Lakers played Tuesday night and didn't arrive in Salt Lake City until the early hours of Wednesday morning. With the All-Star break, it was an easy way to steal an extra day of rest for James.
"We try to be mindful of his in-game minutes," Ham said. "He's playing out of his mind, so it's hard to try to restrict him … but we're close to where we want to be."
Wednesday's game was James' seventh missed contest of the season, and rest days are often followed by some of his strongest performances. So it's a strategy the Lakers will continue to use — Ham even said he'll call up Minnesota coach Chris Finch, who is coaching the West All-Star team, and let him know to limit James' minutes.
Unfortunately, for those in Utah wanting to see James in person, the rest days have fallen on nights against the Jazz. Coincidence? Most likely … but James did have a seven-game losing streak in Utah at the height of his powers in Miami and Cleveland, so there's at least some room to doubt.
"You always want to play the best against the best," Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen said. "But, obviously, we understand it is a little different look for the Lakers when he's not there."
And a little less fun, too.
